


Welcome to the United Republic

by Deruste_the_Archiever



Series: Welcome to the united Republic [1]
Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra, DCU (Comics), Percy Jackson and the Olympians & Related Fandoms - All Media Types, The Kane Chronicles - Rick Riordan
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Fate, Gen, Multiverse
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-15
Updated: 2020-04-15
Packaged: 2020-05-12 05:34:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 4
Words: 25,594
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19222654
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Deruste_the_Archiever/pseuds/Deruste_the_Archiever
Summary: Fate, Is it unbreakable, Unyielding maybe, possibly unrelenting. Can two demigods survive what it has in store with them when the multiverse is thrown their way? Worlds will live, worlds will die and the multiverse will never be the same for Elio and Rio. Welcome to the United Republic.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Slight warning this story takes place after the previous work known as lord of light. just a slight warning if you want a full origin for one of the characters.

When one imagines the nature of the universe, what do they see? A clockwork machine that will go on for an eternity? An explosion that has been going on for billions of years? Maybe even the figment of code made by higher beings that we will never know. Maybe, if one were to listen, a melody. A song that began with the booming vibration of a drum boisterously continued on by the blaring of trumpets, joined by an endless orchestra neighboring countless others in a grand harmony creation. But, just as a song can be rejuvenated by an added note or an orchestra ruined by an extra instrument, a universe can reach an early crescendo. You just need an extra note. Worlds will live, worlds will die, and the multiverse will never be the same.

Universe:?

Timeline:? Two weeks since the events of Lord light.

Place:?

With a loud thunderous burst, the clouds opened up to reveal two teenagers promptly falling from the sky. both about ready to become jelly when they hit the water. One is still conscious but really regretted it. The other wasn't conscious at all. Her limbs flopping in the air as a trident on her back nearly flew out of its sheath as the boy desperately tried to hold onto his bag of supplies.

Below the two of them was a large metropolis with many skyscrapers, roads, and lights despite the sun already being set in the horizon.

Great, just great! Elio thought to himself. All that trouble and the vision still came to pass. Falling from the sky to my watery grave.

At least his falling buddy was Rio Victoria daughter of Oceanus. Good thought Elio. The advantage to that is that they are falling into a bay, disadvantage she is not aware of it. Elio uses his momentum to get closer to Rio. The light from the metropolis around them glaring into their eyes. He grabbed on to her arm and twisted it.

"Ow!" Rio screamed in pain and then punched him. "Wait! E!" She shouted in relief and then proceeded to pummel his face. " What did you do!?"

"Rio! We have a bigger problem!" She paused, fist pulled back.

" Explain what the hell happened!"

"Dammit, can you be pissed after we escape death by falling into an ocean?"

"Explain. This. Bullshit."

"It won't matter if we're dead!"

Her eyes grew large for a second and the sound of their fall was being drowned by the raging water growing nearer. She let out a shallow breath and the water bent and shaped itself into a small tower. They both landed in the spire of water with a painful crash. Elio painfully lay upon the water, not really touching it and feeling as though he landed on concrete. They both raggedly swam back to the surface where the city was in a clearer view. At first glance, they thought it was New York in front of them. Tall skyscrapers, metallic pipes coming out of concrete walls above the sandy beach. Then the detail started to crop up. The writing on the buildings wasn't English, it was some sort of calligraphy, it looked similar to Asian calligraphy. There was a railway for a trolly and in the distance a shipyard with dozen of ships that looked like they were taken out of a 1930s museum. Old oil tankers and a couple of steamboats with large chimneys. Flags that neither of them recognized with symbols of water, fire and a kind of coin with a square hole.

"There! That wasn't so hard was it." Elio gasped, trying to move his body but the initial pain of the fall and landing made trying to get up on his legs a Herculean task. A watery fist took him by the back of his foot and threw him onto the shoreline of the city.

"Be quiet, it's your fault that we're here." The water grabbed and push him forcefully to shore. After cleaning herself off she grabbed her trident and pointed it at Elio. "Now I get to be pissed! Now explain yourself before I use this thing!"

Elio moved the trident with the tip of his finger.

"While you would be doing me a favor I know you're not a killer or is that damned camp successful at making child soldier," he said sullenly. His eyes were tired and red from either exhaustion or the sea salt. His frame shaking from his soaked clothes, he was merely pitiful in his current state. Elio saw the apprehension in Rio's eyes, it was just two weeks ago that she learned she was a demigod. He knew she could not actually kill him but that the anger behind the threat was real. He did wish she could though. It was his fault they were there, his fault that they're not at camp half-blood right now and given that a certain voice isn't whispering in his ear now it's his fault that something worse might happen to them or someone else.

Before anyone could say anything else Rio's ankle buckled under her weight.

"Dammit!" She nearly fell but Elio caught her. "Get off me you piece of-"

Elio ignored her and put her on his shoulder leading her towards the water.

"You're a daughter of a sea god, maybe you share some of-"

She punched him in the face again, he recoiled and she landed in the surf.

"Don't mention his name. Bad enough everyone else compared me to the mighty Percy Jackson." She crossed her arms and pouted as the tide kept rolling in. "I don't need it from you too." She pointed to her ankle. "It doesn't even seem to be healing. All I can do is just make water do what I want." As she explained a small tentacle of water sprang up from the tide and slapped Elio across the face. "Ya burro." she covered her mouth. Elio rubbed his cheek, she left a nasty scar.

At least Rio is part way back to her own self again. Elio thought. That camp turns to many kids into killers for my taste.

"Fine, no comparison and I do have some explanations. sadly none of them about where we are and- ow" Elio touched the tip of the scar and closed his eyes. Elio brightly accented by a new source of light, accompanied by a searing sound of flesh burnt together.

"Ooohh, that has to be a rough way to heal buddy," called a voice from the sewage drainage pipe. The sound of shuffling footsteps came out from one of the large metal pipes. Elio immediately went into a fighting stance "Woah I was just saying you don't see many people using firebending to heal themselves." The man was now visible, a vagabond, very dirty one at that with the look of an old loon. Wild gray hair pointed upwards, a pointed nose with very animated hand motions. Elio relaxed his stance while Rio glared at the old man.

"We got jackshit old man, so panhandle somewhere else," Rio said sternly.

"What she means is that we are just trying to rest from a long journey," Elio added staring disapprovingly at Rio as she sat on the surf. He also did not want to deal with anyone else other than Rio right now but the old man might tell them where they are. The first things that should be answered when figuring out anything are who, when, where, where and why?

"Oh yeah, you fell from the sky right." The man said joyfully like he was just having the best time talking to the flying teens. Elio and Rio stared blankly at him. "Fell from one of those big freighters, right!"

"Sure?" The teens said in unison wondering how did he even see of all that. Though in truth neither understood the mist very well, the opaque layer of magic that prevents normal people from seeing the world for its chaotic true nature. Rio didn't understand just on a practical level and Elio didn't why it was a thing.

They did also know that only people who can see through it are demigods, like them for the most part unless the gods get involved, spirits like nymphs and satyrs, monsters and special humans.

The old man didn't look magical or at least not the type of magic without big asterisks on it. He might be a monster with shapeshifting but that would mean that he would know that they were the children of titans, their bosses a literal month ago. He might be lying about not knowing them but they were weak anyway so why do that?

The only conclusion that Elio had was the man was just a special human. A garden variety hobo.

"Sad to see you lost the pack." Elio immediately jumped at the hobo's words and notice that their food, clothes, and money were gone. He cursed vehemently in Spanish.

"So...um?" Rio looked displeased with the vagabond's close proximity to her, especially since he smelled like sewer and looked like he was a crusty old dumpster diver. "Where are we?" She guessed when they were falling that is was New York city but now she had a better look...everything was wrong. The buildings looked like the ones from the city but less weathered down by time. The buildings looked new with red, blue and green lights from certain areas in the city... The lights and streets looked like they came right out of a history book, mostly gravel roads with barely solid sidewalks if any at all. There was even a 1920's style car parked not far from them.

"You didn't bump your noggin now did you, missy." The bum asked cheerfully. "Welcome to the great and beautiful Republic City, the shiny jewel of the glimmering United Republic."

Rio blinked twice and tried to remember if she heard the name before. Maybe one of those tiny nations that everyone forgets about like Uruguay.

"The name's Gommu."

Near the end of Elio's cursing rant, he saw a large monument far off into the bay.

"Puñeta!" he screamed as he saw a large, copper-green statue on a tiny island. It was a young bald boy dressed in monk robes holding a staff. Elio started shaking, whether in rage or in fear, no one knows. "The statue of liberty is supposed to be a lady right? not an older version of Charlie Brown."

The bum looked at him strangely.

He let out a whistle. "Wow, you must be very new to these's parts. That example of magnificent-ness is the Avatar Aang Memorial. You guys must be travelers, what brings you to this part of the continent?" Elio was the first to snap out of it remembering oh wait, we need to eat and a place to sleep for tonight. Which then made him remember the supplies in the backpack, given the fact that the armor and weapons in the pack are made of metal, they are probably sinking down to the bottom of the ocean. And he couldn't swim. Elio was at a loss for how to get the supplies back.

"It wasn't by choice, side note, can you leave, I think my friend is going to go nuclear and you do not want to see that," Rio remarked as she edged away from the bum.

"All right." The bum said with the same cheerful grin and started to walk off. "If you want some advice on where to go, go to the park and find the most voluptuous bush under the main bridge." She stared at Elio as the water seemed to glow near Rio's feet. After a disturbing crack sounds her from her ankle, while not healed was now, in the right spot.

"Hey dad I graduated a year early, isn't that cool." She said under her breath. "Can I get that car I want? Nope, sweetie your not ready for such a thing, but hey, how about a summer camp where you get to be in New York for a while?" She mimicked a much deeper, laid-back surfer type voice as Elio stared vacantly into the distance. "Really? New York! Sure, when? You'll even meet your cousin Elio there, he'll keep you safe." Rio looked toward as said cousin was paralyzed in defeat having a thousand yards staring contest with the memorial.

She let out a sigh and stared at the water, focusing on a simple command. Fetch. The water near her feet shifted forming into a whirlpool whose submerged tail reached toward the deeper depths of the bay. Rio felt the water touch the bottom surface of rock and sand for the pack, the various forms of life like kelp and schools of fish. Even something that kind felt alligatorish. Gotcha, you magical pieces of crap. Rio thought as the water collected itself around the pack, whipping the currents around it. It was not a small effort for her as it really felt that she was pulling the heavy bag up to the surface.

Elio snapped himself out from the trance and saw the strain on Rio. Elio grabbed her from behind and locking his arms under hers in a full nelson. They both dug their feet into the sand and pulled.

"I-ugh-don't need -hrgh- your help." Rio strained as the pack became visible to both of them.

"Sure that's why the veins in your face are bulging," Elio said through gritted teeth. The weight of the supplies causing both of their faces to be as red as a tomato's, their veins popping. As soon as most of the supply bag was above the water they used the good old fashioned method of rolling it onto the sand.

"What did you stuff this bag with!?" Rio scolded as she fell to her knees with exhaustion. Elio looked the bag over and opened it up revealing the only supplies from camp half-blood they had.

Elio remembered packing up essentials such as weapons, armor, food, flashlights, arrows, books and small trinkets. Why books? One was a book on edible plants and the other was a Greek mythology book. Annotated and underlined at the more important bits. The bag was slightly magical so it could compress the mass but not the weight.

While Elio was prone to anger at times he was also knowledgeable enough to know what they would need, sadly given what little he learned about demigods it seemed more like a game of trying to prepare for everything at once.

"Okay, what are we going to toss?" Rio said scowling at the pile of supplies in front of her. Elio wanted to argue but remembered the pain of dragging it out of the water. Elio crossed his arms.

"The weapons and armor are a must so let's wear them." Rio nodded and grabbed her leather-based armor while Elio took his bronze set. He strapped on his spiked gauntlets. "Hope celestial bronze doesn't rust. You should keep your flashlight but get rid of mine." He showed his right hand and let it glow brightly. "It's redundant."

"Fine but what about the bow and food." She pointed to the pile of waterlogged foodstuff and the broken bow, its string snapped in two. Elio picked up some of the more solid bits of the food and warmed his palms while compressing it.

"You take the water out and I'll rewarm it so it's edible."

"I think it would be best to leave this with the fish."

Elio then pulled out a bag of yellow squares.

Rio facepalmed. "Of course those things survived." She held out her hands for it but Elio kept the bag away from her.

"You know the rule: eat too much and you burn." She crossed her arms in response to Elio's warning.

"My ankle is fucked up and I'm not eating that slop of rice, fritters and sea salt." Elio rolled his eyes at her complaints and split one of the squares in two for them both to eat. Rio grimaced are her measly share, barely big enough for her palm.

"If you want it to last just keep chewing. The healing might even last longer" Elio said casually, tossing it into his mouth. Rio shrugged and started to bite into it. A warm nourishing feeling engulfed her senses, her wounds, and sprains started to heal at a heightened rate. The taste was what had her enraptured. It tasted like her grandmother's gumbo. The little square now replicating the texture and smelled flawless. For Elio, it tasted like a dear friend's empanadas, something he has not had for weeks and really needs at that moment.

They both stared out into the ocean with pensive eyes. What now? What can they do? They can't exactly wear ancient Greek armor around a very Chinatown-like city. Maybe putting it on was a mistake.

A thought occurred to Elio.

"Want to try to talk to the water?" Rio looked toward Elio strangely for a second but then remembered what he meant.

"Dad is the father of fresh water gods and what did I say about the Percy comparisons," Rio scolded.

"I thought he was the first god of the ocean?" Elio rebutted.

"Yes, he's the god of the ocean and my sisters are the goddess of sources of freshwater. This is a bay, not a river or a fountain. Besides, how are you sure that this place has any Oceanids." Rio said, running her hand in the tides.

"If we're lucky the bay has a nereid, if we're not then there is no nymph. At least I will be able to control all of this water which will help with transportation. What about shelter?"

Elio grabbed a fistful of sand and compressed it. His hand glowed brightly for a second and in his palm was a piece of glass. The same curvature and spacing as the inside of his hand. Elio is the type of person who usually works out stress by working on something else. Textbook workaholic honestly and he doesn't try to hide. Though he does go limp when near a breaking point, a fact Rio knew.

A harbor? No too wet and too many sharp rocks. A bubble of air at the bottom of the bay, no not enough air and need to be awake to maintain.

"Perhaps the island to the west."Rio jumped up from fright. A ghostly voice filling her mind for a brief second. "They take in those seeking help."

Elio turned his head from the glass he was making and saw a mound of water rising in front of Rio. The mound slowly took shape and in its place was a weird stout turtle creature. It stood on its hind legs and had a bamboo hat leaking water. Elio instinctually grabbed tightened his gauntlets as Rio grabbed her trident. "I thought you wanted help?" The creature still spoke in Rio's mind but Elio just watched the creature movements. At first, they got behind each other but Rio remembering it was Elio backed away, slowly circling the weird turtle creature.

"What are you?" Rio asked. She kept her gaze focused on the turtle as it just...stood there. It didn't move, breathe or blink.

"Answer the question before we dine on turtle soup," Elio ordered. "If you're a monster then know that you're threatening the son and daughter of the Titans." The turtle did nothing but simply squat on to the surf.

"You called me over here." The creature spoke within their mind again in a calm and kindly manner. "I only wish to know what are you? Spirit? And what is a titan?"

Rio and Elio just stood there dumbfounded. Camp half-blood taught them that monster stop at nothing to kill and eat demigods. Thought the fact that Elio's closest thing to a family was a group of monsters contested this in his mind. Elio decided to take a shot in the dark and unlatched his gauntlets.

"E What are you doing!"

Elio raised a hand to Rio objections and inched closer to the water and started kneeling. The creature looked confused at the demigod's action. Elio let his arms spread open and lay his head down.

"I am sorry, Lord of this bay. I am sorry for insulting you as such, we did beseech you and I did insult you I beg your forgiveness." The creature looked apprehensive toward Elio. It got closer to Elio and put one hand into too the water and grabbed a fish. Elio looked up from his submissive stance and the creature had a bundle of fish in a kelp bouquet near his face.

Elio was used to acting in a certain way to get what he wanted. He would not have half the jobs he had in Puerto Rico if he didn't know how to play certain people. He hadn't encountered that many spirits yet and the few gods he did meet were Oceanus and Mister D for a short time. When he did this with Mister D he treated him well so maybe the turtle will treat him well.

"Thanks? Please cook this, I saw what you did with your hands."

Elio immediately took the fish and went to start a firepit in the sand. For a second, Rio thought that the creature was putting on an act but Elio got close enough to it that the turtle could have snapped his neck.

"Do you want help?" She heard its voice again, its mental voice sounds comforting and nurturing. Like a kindly elder, Rio sighed in relief.

"Yes, Lord…." She realized she didn't know the creatures name much less what it was.

"Yue, call me Yue." It sounded glad to speak...think its name. "You don't have to treat me in this manner. I am simply the spirit of this bay"

"Alright... Yue, we desire your help. We are sadly trapped on your world and we don't have shelter. Please oh god of this bay. If you can either grant us shelter or point us in the way of it we will give great tribute." Rio pleaded as the creature looked in confusion.

"Tribute? God? You definitely don't feel like other humans."The confusion in the psychic voice was deafening and disconcerting. " Again, I am only a spirit of this bay and I don't need a tribute."

"With all respect Yue, what's the difference?" The creature looked confused at Rio's question.

"There are no gods."

The voice sounded like the tone one had when someone was explaining something obvious. Something in Rio's mind broke. She spent the last weeks learning that a cabal of old pagans gods exist, are related and have been partially involved in the major events of humanity. Then a random turtle monster in a Hong Kong/ New York fusion city tells you those gods don't exist. Whiplash was an understatement.

"Hey! Elio, There are no gods here."

"What about that?" Elio yelled as he cooked some fish on glass plates in a glass fire pit. He pointed toward the turtle creature who waved in response.

"Spirit." She said plainly.

"What's the difference?" He said turning the fish over with a glass spatula. The demigod has nearly a whole cabinet worth of glass utensil, a bit crooked and crude from being handmade but all of them did have a genuine shine to them.

"All that aside will you help us?"

The creature put its hand under its chin.

"Tell a story."

"A story?" The creature asked in a shifted tone. "Why a story?" She crossed her arms as the smell of cooked fish permeated the air.

"Your chi is off. It feels like a normal human's chi but something more is in it, like a strange mixture of scents that make a completely new one. A more powerful one. You sound human but you feel like spirits. What are you?"

Both Rio and Elio looked at each other for a second as he passed around glass plates with cooked fish. Elio passed some fish to Yue.

"I can tell you what we are if you can take us to this island you spoke of," Elio said with a gracious smile on his face. His tone and posture resembling that of a restaurant waiter. Rio nearly forgot how conniving Elio could be when he wants to be. Maybe he was acting all nice and gracious now so he can curry the spirits favor for some divine help. He only acts like this when he wants something. "But still why a story?"

"I like a good story but I would like for you to do something for me. A simple task."Yue pointed to some bile dripping into the bay from the various sewer pipes. Black sludge and multi-colored lumps lurching into the water. "Clean my bay if you please."

Rio nearly lost the fish she was eating when she looked upon the ooze stewing in the water. She covered her mouth and raised two fingers. Tendrils of water grabbed various debris from the area such as wood and earth to block the pipes by stuffing them.

"It should give enough time to divide the polluted water from the clean water." Yue saw the tendrils and lifted two fingers as well. It did make tendrils but far fewer and much smaller. For a second Yue looked disappointed at its display.

"Why did you help before I gave you anything?"

"I don't like people ruining other peoples homes. This place is your home so using it to dump sludge is disrespecting it." The spirit stared at her and then at Elio.

"I don't sense intentional evil, but there is malice in both your hearts. One has a hatred towards the other while the other hates themselves." Rio looked at the spirit confused while Elio nodded. "In service of helping the water I get you to the island but in exchange, you must tell me a story when you ask for another favor."

"If you're expecting a grand and epic story you won't find it here. Just bad decisions and lots of pain over the regrets." He said as he gazed into his shoes. Rio rolled her eyes.

"So how you screwed the pooch," She said, chewing on some fish.

"If you don't slow down you'll swallow a bone."

She rolled her eyes again. "You lost all rights to talk to me like you cared." She said throwing a bone in his direction.

"And we were doing so well earlier." He caught the bone before it could hit his left eye. "Anyway Yue. I agree to your terms but my ...companion." Rio narrowed her eyes. "My cousin, who is only barely tolerating my presence?" She nodded while flipping some her dreads over her shoulders, draining some water from them. "Needs to agree too." He motioned to her for a response. She ignored him and looked towards Yue.

"I agree to your words Yue, disregard his words on most things though. If you want." She remarked giving the turtle creature a large smile.

"Can you begin then?"Yue asked.

Elio sighed and made himself comfortable in the sand. "My full name is Eliodoro marizcruz Genaviva Vivas."

Yue clapped its hands. "I like that name, very sing-songy."

"Gotta admit, I'm Spanish too and I didn't think your name would be that long pretentious," Rio said.

"Really tells you the thought process of my mother now does it. Anyway, it all started on an island called borikén." The boy retold his beginnings to the spirit as Rio watched, ready to fact check on the parts involving her.

Time: same as the demigods

Place: abandoned storehouse

In the dilapidated corpse of an industrial zone was a building that would serve as the staging ground of a revolution of downtrodden non-benders. A small group of masked men and women walked into what would be their stage for their grand "Revelation" their preparing. Unknown to the group on the stage under the was a boy with a black diamond and a bowl of black water.

"Why did you show me this?"

"Because I needed to show you what I can do and…" The voice spoke through the mind of the meek boy. Rattling and cold, like the clacking of corpse bones in a blizzard. "Those two would be of prime interest."

"Why?" The boy asked, his body sweating profusely.

"For the same reason, I asked you to join these fools above us. Opportunity strikes for those who seek it. Now like we practiced. The boss man is making his appearance."A masked man walked out of some back rooms with a mustache man with an electric generator on his back. "Big simile and revolutionary spirit, like we practiced."The boy breathed in and out but calmly. Steadying it from the floorboards. He opened a hatch behind the man as it seems he was having a conversation with the human generator. Before he had forgotten he slipped on his own mask. "Let the show begin."Cackled the spirit.

Author's note- I hope you enjoy the story and for those of you who come to from Lord of Light, I hope the change isn't too sporadic. The schedule is tenuous but so far it's either once a week or every two weeks depends on when school comes back into session. If you have an opinion on the story I hope you share changes will come whenever I get an idea to make it better. Toodle-loo


	2. The stories we tell ourselves

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> so far: Elio and Rio are now stuck in a universe they don't recognize. They made a deal with a water spirit named Yue to tell their story in exchange for the spirits favors. Meanwhile, a threat arises to contest with the Equalist of republic city.

_I believe I had **you**  chomping on the bit with the talk about  **vibrations** , so in the grand tradition, I'll continue it. An added  **note**  can sour a song's meaning and tone, something put where it doesn't belong starts a  **chain reaction**. Much like the tornado made by a butterfly, a  **stranger**  in a  **strange**  place heralds  **changes**. How much change depends on the  **stranger**. Will they  **alter**  what is meant to be? Will they let  **fate**  takes its course? Will the  **wheel**  that traps us all keep us in line or will it crumble under the strain of  **possibility**? Such  **ruminations**  are for another time, however. The pieces are in place for a  **grand**  performance to be held. A dance of  **light**  and  **dark** ,  **ocean**  and  **sun** ,  **Constance**  and  **variability**  Such fun is yet to be had. My modern name is  **Eclipso, all-around retired supervillain**. Excuse the pageantry, my taste comes from  **classic**  villainy. Over-the-top  **costumes** , big declarations of  **thoughts**  and  **emotions**. The early ' **60s**  to late ' **80s** , oh those were the days._

_**You**  may have a question as to whom I am addressing? Did I just refer to  **you**? Do I see  **you**? No to the  **last**  question, but I do  **feel**  you. Like a  **predator's**  eye on a limping stray. Those of us who are not really people within the  **universe**  and are the integral parts have a sense for these things._

_Like how a **demon**  has a sense of sin._

_I adore **you**. How you take pleasure when  **we**  take pleasure, how you relish  **our**  fights for  **our**  beliefs. A  **bit**  one-sided, but I won't fault  **you**  for that._

_Though that is **mostly**  based on guesswork. You may be  **weaker** , but you are behind a  **veil**  of reality that I simply can't breach. The options are exciting, don't  **you**  think? You weren't expecting an introduction, were  **you**?_

_I just wanted **you**  to know bits about me before we go further. Call  **me**  conceited, but I believe a  **performance**  should have people's hair standing on end. And if I must be a  **puppet**  in a show, then I'll make it a  **heartstopper**._

Universe: Magically based with minor deities present.

Timeline: Industrial Revolution-Age Technology level.

Location: Abandoned factory and the base of the domestic terrorists, The Equalists.

P.O.V:?

A young man wearing simple leather, mostly around his joints, a plain wooden mask with only two eye holes stood in front of another masked man. He questioned if it was a good idea to have appeared from underneath the floorboards. His swamp attire drew confused gazes from the assembled terrorist. All he did seem to draw was disbelief and confounded looks.

"Alright, weirdo, give us one good reason we don't force you out of here." A man with Kai and an electrical generator on his back went between the swamp boy and the masked man. Amon and his lieutenant, the young man thought. Eclipso has been trying to find any substantial rumor on them that wasn't just an exaggeration.

He couldn't even find a name for the lieutenant.

_**Focus**  on my instruction._ A voice began speaking in his head. A cold and dark one that reverberated in the young man's bones.  _Be careful, the **lieutenant**  is not interested in our antics._ Eclipso said within his mind.

Amon was the leader of the Equalist, a non-bending group within the city that has been making more aggressive moves as of late. Amon was a strange one, no one knew anything about him outside of what he looks like. The young man wasn't quite sure what to make of him.

All he knew for sure is that Amon wore a mask like he did. And that a person only wears a mask to hide something.

"Canyoureallydoit?" the young man stuttered out.

" Look, kid, clearly you confused about who you're dealing with, so back off." The lieutenant Kai sticks sparked with electricity. The other equalist taking slow steps toward the stranger.

_Show him your **shame**._

The masked boy held out his hand and focused on breathing, a bubbling that started in his stomach traveled from up the arm. It stopped in the right palm and a flame flashed into existence.

"This...I want to get rid of...this," the young man said, his mask facing the ground.

The young man heard the mumble and grumble of the grunts, sounding very confused at what they were grunts were more shaky in their stances while Amon and his lieutenant held a strong gaze on the young man.

"Too much pain…must go away." The young man closed his hand as the flame extinguished into smoke. "Reminds me...of horrid man." The equalists rallied in a small circle as their leader circled the mysterious swamp man.

_**Excellent**  now let him take. I want to see if the rumors of his ' **Gift** ' are true._

"Please…if you're a savior...save me."

Amon said nothing to his remark, and his equalist inched closer in a circle around.

"Was it...a lie?"

_He signaled from behind with his hands to **pounce**  on you, Eclipso clarified. He doesn't believe your here to have your  **fire**  taken._

Any suggestions? the young man thought.

_Quite **simple** : When in doubt always go with the  **unexpected**._

The stranger gave it some thought. Only one idea crossed his mind.

He started kneeling.

The confusion from the equalists was compounded by the stranger's sudden surrender.

"All I want is for it to be gone...I want to move on from...him." The leather-clad grunts all looked at each other and then the lieutenant. He, in turn, looked toward Amon, who was now behind the young man.

"If that is what you seek, I won't deny your salvation." Amon's cold voice lingered in the stranger's ear. It reminded him of Eclipso, to a lesser degree. A breeze compared to a hurricane.

The young man felt several small points of numbness behind him as his limbs went limp. Several of the grunts held him up by his arms as their leader placed one thumb on the stranger's neck and another dead center on his forehead.

Within an instant, the stranger felt a wave of exhaustion and lingering pain in his mind. Amon and his peons let the boy go, letting him fall to his side.

"If that is all, boy of the swamp, leave this place and don't bother us -"

"You lied." The young man's voice became cold, hollow and sharper. "The rumors said that you had a gift of the spirit's but all that I felt was...human."

The Equalists stared at the swamp man.

_Sad to say the **rumors**  are wrong. Eclipso remarked. He uses  **blood bending**  to block the paths of chi. He cut off the Reiki paths, he…. You don't have any  **idea**  of what I'm saying,  **do**  you?_

_He's using **bending**  to get rid of bending._

_**Essentially**. It's not a  **gift**  of spirits, sad to say he just a  **charlatan**._

"Why do you mean by human?" Amon questioned, as the grunts looked toward their leader.

"Nothing..."

"Then leave -"

"I felt nothing but you. What you've done had no spirits help." The stranger threw a punch into the air but no flame burst came from it. "It's gone but it was not by a gift of the spirit's."

"You think I lie?"

"The lies are not of the process...but of source and reason."

"Source and reas- this is going nowhere. Lieutenant, just put him in a holding cell."

"Does he...does your lieutenant… not have a name?" Ravana asked looking at the lieutenant. The grunts and lieutenant ignored the comment as two grunts grabbed the young man by the arms. One for each. "If it helps, mine is Ravana."

"Well then Ravana, why did you come here?" The lieutenant droned as the grunts tied Ravana's hands behind his back and walked him away from Amon.

"I wanted...I wanted." Ravana commented. "To know if he was like me... But in reality... he was less than me."

"Blah, blah, blah, you will have plenty of time to think in your cell bender scu-" The grunt was cut off by the pain of Ravana's skull launching into his face. Ravana then tripped the other one with a quick leg sweep and repeatedly stomped on the side of the grunts' knees, alternating between the two.

_A tad **excessive**._

_I'm sorry, lord Eclipso._

_I **know**  you are, but you must better  **compose**  yourself, were  **not**  savages. Now then, please send  **Amon**  over to me._

The rest of the Equalist in the building, minus Amon and the Lieutenant, were now charging the young man.

"Is Amon that… scared of a… swamp tribesman?" Ravana pride grew just from the mere thought.

"How dare you speak to our leader in such a manner!" yelled one of the faceless grunts as he lunged at Ravana, launching into a clumsy palm strike.

Ravana dodged it with a simple turn of his heel, and the equalist fell flat on his stomach with an undignified thud. The young man then shrugged at Amon's foolish grunt. Amon's glance didn't change as the grunt flopped like a flounder. Ravana then lifted his foot ready to stomp on the grunt's now exposed spine.

Ravana was then tripped by a grunt from behind. Three grunts began to stomp on him.

"Don't underestimate him and take him out quickly, we'll let him go when the city learns the Revelation," Amon spoke calmly. The boy felt a tinge of pride that he was being taken seriously.

_How **cute**. he has a name for his  **blood bending**  technique. Do you need some help, by the way?_

The boy didn't respond as the flurry of pain kept his thoughts too chaotic.

_Someone needs to have more **endurance**  training._

As the group of equalist grunts stops their rapid stomping the swamp man's crumpled form was beneath them.

The swamp tribe men's left arm bent in the wrong direction, as did his right foot.

The scars and bruises on his body were more visible as all the pieces of wooden armor were now cracked, all but Ravana's blank mask.

"That was...too easy," the largest of the grunts remarked.

"What does it matter? Grab him and go to the cell," shot back a shrill, cracked voice. The third grunt stopped the other two from moving.

"Don't get near him, Hou Ti may be right."

"What makes you say that?"

"How did he recover that quickly?" said a grunt pointing at Ravana, as he laid down on the ground aching from his pummeling. "He should have been noodle limping that whole fight."

The other two shrugged and one of them pointed toward their leader.

"I don't know? Bossman didn't seem surprised."

" Guess if the boss isn't worried we shouldn't be." The shrill one remarked, helping the lieutenant pick up Ravana's pummeled victims. All of whom were groaning in pain.

"Hey, all I'm saying is -"

"Dodge!" Amon commanded. The grunt was forced forward by a blow to the back of his head.

Ravana got back up with his injures already healed. Even his armor was back in one piece.

"Rush him," Amon ordered. The young man shrugged his shoulders, faced with four equalist coming straight at him.

Ravana shifted his weight to his right side to gain momentum and landed on the left palm. His first hit was the shrill-voiced one.

He simultaneously knocked out three of the Equalist with blows to the side of the head. He then spun upward and landed on his feet to the amusement of the Lieutenant.

The lieutenant managed to escape the spin kick.

"A bender that gave his fire willingly? All while wearing swamp tribe gear, you're a curious one, aren't you?" the lieutenant remarked coldly.

After a single minute of quick fighting, the only ones left in the warehouse were Ravana, The lieutenant, Amon, and the currently incapacitated grunts.

_He **hates**  you quite a lot,_ Eclipso said gleefully.

_Who and why my lord?_  Ravana thought.

_In his **own**  words,  **quote** : If only  **he**  would have attacked first. Would've made  **everything**  simpler.  **Unquote**._

The lieutenant rushed straight at the young man with his weapons ready and unleashed a barrage of blows that were blocked beat by beat by Ravana.

Ravana waited for an opening within the stream of hits and took grabbed them staring down the lieutenant face to face.

The lieutenant gave a little smirk. "Sorry, kid lights out." He pressed two buttons. A surge of electricity sparked throughout Ravana's nerves, but he didn't let go. The lieutenant discovered something disturbing, there was no damage on the boy. There wasn't a single burn or scar as the electricity crackled from his blunt weapons.

Ravana then retaliated with a swift kick, separating him from his weapons, which were still in Ravana's hands.

"I think you should let me handle this," Amon said, staring down at Ravana who stood over the defeated Lieutenant. "Do you have any other surprises?"

"I do have a magic trick," Ravana said, as he reached for one of the straps of his mask.

_Do send **him**  my way. I wish to have a  **little**  chat with our masked revolutionary._

"Let's end this foolishness." Amon, at a near-inhuman level of speed, dashed toward the swamp man as the mask fell from Ravana's face. Right before Amon could finish his move he was stunned by what he witnessed.

Ravana had no face. Just bare skin, flat and smooth with a small ridge where his eyes should have been. In the split second that Amon was distracted, Ravana grabbed his wrist.

Amon tried to escape Ravana's grasp, but the swamp man was stronger than he looked. His grip twisted Amon's wrist, and the more he tried to get away, the tighter Ravana held on. Ravana's grip grew so strong that he started to crush the bone's of Amon's wrists.

As Ravana pulled Amon closer, his face began to emit light. Ravana's veins searing through his skin in a golden glow.

"In the blackest day, in the brightest night…." A burst of glowing, golden light shone from the boy's face as a human arm, made of yellow light, sprang from it and grabbed Amon by the neck.

"Don't think you can frighten me!" Amon shouted. The light coming from Ravana's face began to illuminate the staging area around them and the unconscious grunts, casting a shadow against the stage curtain.

"Beware your fears coming to light…."

"How are you -?" Amon started, but the hand that sprang from Ravana's face tightened its grip around his neck.

"Let those who try to stop what's right..." All the hands made various grunt and effort noise, like the bodies they were attached to were only on the other side of the shadows they sprang from."Be consumed by my power, Eclipso's might."

The hand choking Amon let go and mouth manifested in its palm.

"Oh, Noahtok, it has been too long," said the mouth. It was an elderly but husky voice radiating with venom.

"Fa-fa-father?" stammered Amon. The hand grabbed Amon's face and dragged Amon's entire body into Ravana's face. The sound of skin and bone being crunched filling the air of the complex.

_"Leave the **rest**. We don't need more  **pawns**  than needed, just the  **king**."_ Eclipso's voice was now outside the boy's mind. It came out of every shadow and hand that Ravana had manifested. The lieutenant lifted his battered face from the floor and caught a glimpse of Amon half-sucked into Ravana's face.

"Was that a good debut, Lord?"

Some of the shadow hands shrugged.

_"Not big or flashy enough to make your **first**  appearance. A  **true**  introduction to the world needs more  **Pop** ,  **Flash** ,  **Circumstance**. Something the world has  **never**  seen before."_

Ravana slumped his shoulder in disappointment as Amon was completely absorbed into his face.

_" **Luckily** , unlike  **most**  others, you can  **redo**  first impressions."_

As the hand grabbed the lieutenant and the other grunts, there was a whisper in Ravana's ear.

_"Just **repeat**  those words, and this will be all a bad  **dream**  to them."_

"If you say so, Lord Eclipso. Yromem esare!" As Ravana loudly pronounced the words, the hand's around the grunts and the lieutenant grew an eye at the center of each palm. The hands then pressed themselves against all of the Equalists' foreheads.

_" **There** , that should at least  **erase**  the last ummm...five, maybe ten minutes from their memory. You know  **what** , do it again after the  **first**  five just to be sure they don't remember."_

"Should I go to you after I do that?"

_"Absolutely **not**! I found a book I will need for the next steps of the plan, and Wan shi tong's on my case for just having you around his  **precious**  collection. Good back to your post and wait for  **further**  instructions."_

Ravana bowed to Eclipso as he waited for the hands to finish their mind wiping.

"So what I did mattered."

"...I told you not to say things like that. You matter, don't even let yourself say that about you."

"Thank you, Lord Eclipso. I hope your...chat goes well."

_"If it doesn't, I'll find **someone**  else to join us.  **Oh** , and remember to hide the  **mercury**  bowl, those kinds of  **ingredients**  don't come cheap."_

Ravana nodded as he ran toward the nearest exit and tried to remember the directions to his hospital.

P.O.V: Ravana

As the hands did their work on the minds of Amon's henchmen, another scene played out in the bowl of mercury. Rio and Elio

P.O.V: Elio

Time: The moon is high and sunset is passed. Roughly under 10 min since arrival.

Place: Yue bay around a small campfire right next to the spirit Yue.

"It all started on an island named Borikén."

"That not the island's name," Rio said with annoyance as Elio watch her pick at the bones of her fish. It was staining her Camp Half-Blood orange T-shirt.

"Yes, it is," Elio spat back. Rio rolled her eyes. He felt slightly embarrassed that it came out more petulant than he expected.

"Does this island have two names?" Yue asked, picking out some sea plants. They were sitting closer to the tide then either Elio or Rio. Sitting on the sand making a pile of seaweed and various other plants.

The two demigods had a small-stare down until Elio relented.

"Yes and no. In short, it had a name before it was conquered by the colonizers, and now everyone uses the colonizer's name instead of the true one." Elio said with a hand under his chin.

He poked at a fire pit he had made to cook the fish.

He took a look at himself with the reflective surface of the glass fire pit. The best physical description of Elio was a native American alexander. A strong frame with sharp facial features and eyes that shone like gold.

Though the water whip Rio used on him earlier had left a slightly visible scar on his cheek. While it still stings it was healing at a quick pace. His thoughts then turned back to his and Rio's current situation, the story that Yue wanted.

A part of him hated that fact that he was already thinking of ways to con Yue. It was mostly out of habit. Technically, the smart thing would have been to withhold as much detail as possible.

Yue was offering favors for stories, so every detail could have been a story in its own right. Elio shook his head at the thought of it.

Conning tourists in San Juan was one thing, but a divine spirit is another.

Yue nodded. "Oh, I see, that makes sense. This city was once called Crane-fish town when they still respected the spirits." Yue piled the sea plants into a neat pile. "Could you make me a tea set? I think it will help calm the nerves."

Elio looked at the turtle with a mixed look of exasperated and acceptance.

"Anything special about it?" Elio asked as he gathered the sand for the project.

"Just a plain one would suffice, maybe make it the same color as the sea if you could."

"So, Yue…" Rio started, as she watched Elio with a careful eye. "I gotta ask. If it's not rude what pronouns do you like more?" Yue looked at Rio strangely.

"Whatever makes you comfortable!" Yue replied cheerfully.

"Ok? That wasn't really an answer. Anyway, What kind of story do you want? You said you'd give us a favor for telling you one, but you didn't say what kind you wanted."

Yue put a hand under their chin as the sound of the fish sizzling filled the silence.

"A truthful one?" Yue shrugged. "One that reveals how you think and act."

"Yeah, that does not narrow things down." Rio facepalmed

"Am I frustrating you?" Yue asked.

"No, no, no," she said nervously. "It's just that...I basically just got thrown into this crap two weeks ago." She stared at the back of Elio's head as he worked. "If anything it's him who's making me frustrated."

Elio didn't respond as he put the finishing touches on the teapot.

"He does not hold hatred for you if that means anything."

Rio looked at Yue, confused.

"Do you read minds?" She held a scared expression in her eyes.

Yue gave her a confused look.

"I can read emotions, most spirits can. I never heard of any being that could read another's thoughts."

"Well...that's partially comforting," Rio remarked.

Elio breathed a sigh of relief. After Eclipso he did not want to meet another being that can read minds.

"So I assume that you want an origin story, then?" Elio asked, turning to face Yue with a fresh glass teapot, glass plate and three small glass cups in his hands. They were simple in shape, but dazzling in colors as they captured the light of the campfire.

"How about you finally explain the shit that brought us here," Rio said angrily, glaring. Elio felt a burning, slimy pit in his stomach. If it was shame or guilt, not even quite know. He just knew that he deserved her remarks.

Now how do I explain the worst mistake in my life while telling her what might come after us? Preferably in a way where she does not kill me right away. Elio thought. He honestly wasn't sure if it was safe to talk about him. Not in an emotional sense, but because of that strange quirk about divine and mystical beings:

The more you think or speak of them the more they take notice. Saying their name would be the equivalent of shooting a flare gun into the air.

"I have an idea but I'll probably be out of commission for a while." Elio wasn't sure about it, but if Eclipso is no longer in his mind and was running around, Rio needed to know about him.

" Okay now what are talking about. Wait, this is a trick, isn't it?" Rio nearly grabbed her trident, but Yue put her hand on Rio's shoulder.

"If there is malice or violence in his mind or heart, I will stop him. I do sense fear in him," Yue spoke truthfully.

"I don't want to hurt you. If I did, the trident would already be glowing red from heat." Elio sat on his knees with his head parallel to the sand.

Rio kept glaring at Elio.

"Talk." Rio said sternly.

"It's easier to show." Elio closed his eyes and tried to focus on the heat of the firepit. The warmth radiated into the surrounding sand. The energy being created from the burning wood. He took a heavy breath as he concentrated on the words and enchantment.

Rio and Yue looked at him with raised eyebrows.

As he exhaled, his breath carried a brightness on it that resembled neon lights.

"What is -" Rio was cut off by Elio blowing as much air as his lungs contained into the fire pit.

"What ability is this now?" The turtle spirit asked as they poured some water into their new teapot.

"I...I don't know." Rio stammered. Elio had to remind himself that this was Rio's typical reactions to strange things. While she did have a temper she was still a regular person with her own limits for how much strangeness they can take at once.

The air around Yue and Rio wavered as the bright gas coming out of Elio swirled around them, forming a dome of hot, colorful gas mixed with sand.

Within the dome, human silhouettes moved and darted before Rio and Yue. When she looked to Elio, his visage looked strange.

What were strong features where now slightly softer and weaker. Bags were forming under his eyes as the amber, gold eyes lost their luster.

"Sorry for not telling-" Elio started to koff as the gasses started to cover his visage. " earlier, about this. The first thing you should know is there's a spirit who knows magic and he also tried to teach me some."

"You knew magic this whole time!" Rio yelled out as she covered her nose and mouth from the gas and sand.

"Ah, so your not a fire bender." Yue shrugged as she processed the seaweed into the teapot. "And this spirit you mention must be why I smell spiritual essence one you. It reeks of negative emotions."

Elio face looked haggard, his palms sweaty as he held them aloft to focus on the spell.

"As I...said… easier to...show." Elio felt the back of his throat dry up, his stomach in knots.

"What is happening to you?" Asked a concerned Yue as the gases and sand around them coalesced into circular windows around them.

"Magic… always has...price…" As the last of the gas left Elio's body he felt extremely weak.

His joint felt like jelly, his tongue was like dry cotton. All his remaining power was devoted to just keeping himself awake as he nearly fell into the fire pit.

The quick intervention of Yue prevented him from falling into the fire. The spirit held a finished cup of tea in her hand as Elio felt his own heart in a limbo state of life and death. Yue hoisted him onto his knees.

Holding onto his remaining strength, Elio pointed to the dark windows and Rio watched as the darkness swirled within them. Breaking way for faded images to be visible.

A cold, hollow voice was broadcasted from the window. " _Do you know what the **fate**  of a demigod is? How they only live lives of  **servitude** ,  **suffering** , and  **sublimation**? How they become nothing more than pawns of divine  **pissing**  matches of vengeful deities? And that is without even mentioning the last  **curse**  that is thrust upon them."_

Rio peered into one of the windows of darkness. A young Native American man in a hotel uniform was sitting on one end of a long office table, with the name tag reading Eliodoro Vivas.

On the opposite side of the table was a strange and unearthly sight.

The ...thing on the other side was a shadow man. The shadow man was wearing a 1920's black and white suit. The suit was the only physical part of him; the rest was pure shadow leaking out of the suit. Stray archaic symbols were scattered in the shadow being.

The head was the strangest part. There was a permanent triangular smile on a teardrop-shaped head. Tentacle-like hair swayed from an unknown breeze. His two eyes were a crescent moon on his left and a symbol of a single atom on his right.

"What in god's name is that thing!?" Rio shrieked.

"What's the final curse?" the younger Elio asked, as the shadow man's smile grew larger.

_"It's the **final**  curse of all demigods. No matter what you  **slay** , save, or  **delay** , you will always face the  **final**  threat. The monster you were not  **destined**  to kill hands you the final blow, the goddess you scorned gets the  **last**  laugh, the damnation brought to you by your  **own**  hand. That is the  **final**  curse of demigods. To be a bright candle that is  **snuffed**  out too soon."_

Rio felt the words of the shadow man wash over her. His words felt like small tendrils, worming their way into her mind and soul. A part of her felt the truth within the words of the shadow man.

It was one of the lessons that camp half-blood. The unspoken truth that all of them were going to die painfully, tragically or both. Oh sure wonder boys like Percy, freaking, Jackson gets off scot-free defying death but for every Percy, there is a charlie Beckendorf. Dead on the floor.

_"Make a deal with me on the **River Styx**. Help me break  **free**  of my prison, and I'll give you the key to yours."_ The spirit held out its hand. It was like a kid drawing of hands, plump sausage fingers that ended in points.

"God damn it, he even looked evil, why did you make a deal with him?" Rio pulled on her dreads in frustration.

_"He had no choice."_

A voice separate from Elio and Yue answered it echoed from all around Rio, but as she looked back to Elio, he was silent. Images of a tan, white boy with dark hair and green eyes filled the dark windows. At the side of the boy were a blond, white girl with gray eyes and a Satyr.

_"Dey had to pay. Must be made to pay. Dey are De ones to blame. He was too weak. He is too weak. He will always be too weak!"_

The voice's pitch and the tone were enthralling, like a somber melody with sharp edges that hooked inside your mind. It was a powerful, commanding voice that wracked Rio's spine with chills and a crawling sensation. It carried power similar to the shadow spirit, but Rio felt the difference. The spirit had an aura of self-regard; the woman felt something like a twisted form of self-confidence.

Yue carried Elio's still body in their arms as the images around all three of them swirled once more.

"Elio! What's going on?" Rio asked as the voice rattle her soul.

Elio form was shaking, the color in his skin draining as the voice carried a tone he hoped to never hear again.

"No, no, no you should be dead! I made sure the spell only showed my memories!? Not, not, not!?" Elio struggled with his words as his body was limp, the adrenaline of fear giving him a bit more energy to speak. Every part of his mind and soul were screaming at him to get away, to leave Yue and Rio so he would not see that witch's face ever again. The dark windows around showed a new memory.

An old house at the southern tip of Puerto Rico. A knife pointed at his back, a face he did his best to forget.

"What did you summon?" Yue asked as she tried to bolster Elio's withering form.

"Eldora Vivas." Even for this, he did his best not to remember her face. Sadly, her face was the clearest in his view.

"Wait - Vivas?" Rio's surprise was punctuated by the woman's laugh.

_"Yes, young lady. Eldora Maricruz Genoveva Vivas be de name. Speaker of De Zemi, Last shaman of De Kalinago of Boriken, mother of de blood-bag you call Elio."_  As the voice listed her titles, a humanoid form started to take shape in the air. A skeletal frame emerged from the darkness around them, skin and muscle from made from the bright gases. Finally, the sand and loose bits of debris were transformed into a simple linen dress.  _"You should have know dat dey be the consequence for invokin' de past, boy."_

" I don't care who you are but that 'boy' owes me a lot of explanations before anyone can kill him." Rio tried to pull a brave face but her hasty stance was already shaking in Eldora's presence.

A dark smile grew on Eldora's face as Elio's body shivered in remembrance. The wounds on his back felt fresh again with agonizing pain.

Yue kept a hard glare at the mystery women who returned it with a slim, Cheshire grin.

_"Really daughter of the deep ocean? You will defend De one who damned you to dis fate?"_  Eldora gesture for the mirror to surrounding them as the dome grew in size to be as wide as a school bus.

_"De one who made deals with demons."_  She pointed to the mirror with Eclipso and Elio shaking their hands.  _"De one who was raised by monsters."_  The images of a snake woman, A Cyclops, Laistrygonian giant and a strange short dog, seal man appeared in the window around a small Elio in a large, family-style pose.

All were monster that half-blood said were some of the craftist and dangerous.

_"Or best yet de one who committed one of the greatest sins of your new divine family."_  Rio looked at Elio with a confused glare.

"I did what I had too! I...I just wanted to be free." Elio stammered out, the look of fear in his eyes reached their zenith.

Eldora made a beckoning gesture and one of the mirrors floated over to her.

_"'Ell you what you girl. I show the boy greatest shame and if you give me him. You go home, no tricks, no traps, I even sweat on the river styx."_  Eldora flashed a shiny smile that cut through the murky vision of the dome. Elio was sweating profusely, that...that thing made a deal that Rio couldn't refuse.

A ticket home. All she had to do was give the guy who helped ruin her life.

P.O.V: Eclipso

_**Wan Shi Tong's**  library was a beautiful place to hold such a meeting. The place was  **overgrown**  with the beautiful  **greenery**  of the spirit wilds spilling in from  **cracks**  in the walls. Far from being a sign of  **decay** , it was a mark of  **symbiotic**  beauty. I often thought  **Wan**  had actually influenced the plants into not being  **destructive**  toward the studies._

_I sat in a lotus position over a bowl of **mercury**. I was watching my former  **partner**  nearly tear himself apart with magic. It was right next to a table adorned with tea and little cakes and the  **black diamond**  centerpiece. A friendly  **human**  spirit gave them to  **Wan Shi tong**  earlier as a welcoming gift for me.  **Didn't**  get to see him,  **Wan**  refused to let him in.  **Eroh**  or  **iron**  something._

_That boy has a knack for creativity, but could never get his mind around certain **concepts**. Mainly that things have  **consequences**. Even gods need  **permission**  to pull off their biggest feats, usually the head god or whatever greater force the  **pantheon**  follows._

_The boy is **far**  from a god and even divine beings can't always handle magic._

_Sometimes the mere act of making a real rabbit appear out of a hat could make the **caster**  body go into a husk-like state. Such a  **shame** , I thought I  **taught**  him better._

_"_ Why is there a bowl of mercury in my library? _" A **cold**  voice droned behind me._

_"Please **pray**  tell, do  **demons**  exist in your world, **Wan Shi Tong**?" I turned to  **face**  said owl spirit. All in all physically  **impressive**  for a literal owl, a  **towering**  figure with wings that draped like robes. All topped off with a simple  **black**  and  **white**  color scheme._

_The spirit may have some likeness to a **penguin** , but his demeanor dispelled such notions._

_"_ You avoided the question, but to answer it, could you describe what exactly is a demon? _"_

_I stared at the image of **Eldora**. With a wave of my hand, the bowl floated its way to **Wan Shi Tong**._

_My form was not as simple as **Wan shi Tong.**  I am a being of energy that may have thoughts but  **no**  physical body. The " **body** " everyone sees is not there, it's just how their minds  **rationalize**  my existence._

_The general rule is simply that they see what they **hate**  the most. If I so choose, however, they see a  **basic**  stick figure-like shadow. Skinny limbs with  **sharp**  edges, legs that end in nubs while  **runes**  dot my body._

_"Demons are beings born of **negative**  emotions. I think my old partner has created this world's first  **demon**."_

_"Fascinating," The **owl spirit**  said with cold interest. His  **gaze**  moved back to me. "Answer my question."_

_"It's a **simple**  ingredient for scrying," I  **explained** ,  **casually**  floating in the air._

_He really had no **reason**  to complain, I was doing my scrying in the former **Fire Nation**  section of his library. A corner of  **untouched**  ash that carried the smell of burned parchment._

_While I can't read **Wan shi tong's**  mind, I know a **corner of shame**  when I see one. I specifically chose this spot for  **scrying**  because he avoids it. Also, the negative emotions about and from this  **corner**  give me a slight boost._

"I'll allow this so long as you do your…scrying far from the other materials." _He **scowled**  at me -I think. His face never really changes, so  **technically**  it was a guess. The  **Monotone**  didn't help either. It was  **quite**  annoying at times._

_"I have **and**  will."_

_To be **fair** , though,  **Wan**  thinks as me as an annoyance, so that balances our relationship._

_"_ You daily tribute as well. _" The owl held out his wings in patient formality. I sighed and reached **deep**  inside myself._

_Wan Shi Tong is a spirit with a **profound**  number of tedious rules. One of  **them**  being a non- **negotiable**  entry  **fee**  for residing in the library._

_I pulled out a stack of **ten**  books from my midsection,  **most**  being textbooks and encyclopedias. Encyclopedia Britannicas, to be  **exact**. A few  **National**  Geographics peppered in as well. All from  **separate**  worlds._

"I demand only one per arrival," _ **Wan shi tong**  said as he pecked at the stack with great interest._

_"I thought you could only deal with so many times before **kicking**  me out so I made early payments. " I said  **nonchalantly** , watching Wan shi tong inspected the books._

"This is a bribe for another visitor."

_I pulled out **another**  book from my body._

" ** _Yes_**."

_We stared at each other in **stark**  silence. The owl's  **soulless** , beady eyes  **versus**  my unmoving, glowing symbols. The  **book**  in my hand, a book on the  **mythology**  of a world -  **Elio's**  world._

"Make sure they only stay in this corner and take no knowledge with them. Double for that 'pet' you let follow around."

_I felt my eye twitched at the **mention**  of pet._

" ** _Ravana_**."  _I said with **distinction**._

_**Wan Shi Tong**  rolled his eyes. The owl features  **exaggerating**  the motion._

"If either human makes a mockery of my rules like the fool from the water tribe decades ago, I will find and reveal their secrets to the world."

_"I'm **not**  stopping you from watching."_

_As I spoke the **owl**  was already hungrily absorbing the knowledge from my books, pulling out a  **translation**  cipher from one of his fox assistan_ts.

"Simply remember the rules and there will be no conflict. Understand, Spirit of change?"

_Spirit of **change**  sound much more comforting than the lord of chaos, don't you  **agree**?_

_I nodded and bowed **toward**  the spirit. He moved his  **wing**  over the books and they disappeared from sight._

_Simple teleportation behind a **glorified**  hand trick, but it still tends to wow  **mortals**  now and again._

_He turned away from me and flew off to one of the many **balconies**  in the library holds._

_They looped and bent to avoid the **books**  and  **scrolls** , although that meant they mostly crowded on the  **floor**. Seeing as he was a rather large  **owl** , Wan shi tong didn't need to worry about  **tripping**. The  **light**  of the outside illuminated the many reading nooks perfectly,  **but**  sadly, I had to avoid these  **spots**. it's quite the  **semi-vampire**  weakness of mine; direct  **light**  hurts me unless I have a skin suit._

_As I **looked**  around, I felt the  **sensation**. My form warping and  **disapparating**  in places. The feeling that the  **space**  around was unstable, becoming  **jelly-like**._

_The space around me **fluctuated**  and swirled. The ash started to swirl near one of the walls. The portal was  **opening**._

_The **vortex**  opened to my left._

_**Alright** , I had to be  **quick**  about this, or  **he'd instantly**  die. Sad to say this form of  **transportation**  is nearly always fatal, given the bone  **and**  organ crushing. Can't exactly  **breath**  with a rib in your lung._

_The **crumpled**  form of a leather-clad, masked man slowly was  **pushed**  out of the portal. His limbs  **twisted** , bent in  **unnatural**  directions. Barely a  **flicker**  of life was left in his mind._

_"I must **teach**  that boy a less... **harmful**  form of teleportation," I  **muttered**. As  **Amon's**  body finally left the portal, I held out my  **wisp-like**  hand and began chanting._

_The chant was also made up of pictographs and words from many **pantheons** , A couple of hieroglyphs from the lands of  **Kemet** , known to many as  **Egypt** , I drew out in the  **air**. I chanted out loud in  **ancient**  Greek, reinforced with  **Latin**. Finally some  **Hebrew** , from the time of  **Solomon**. A  **dangerous**  combination, If I missed one note  **or**  pronunciation I might take out everything in a mile radius._

_It carried a **chaotic**  melody._

_As I spoke, their symbols and visual forms **surrounded**  Amon in a frenzy of colors and motion. The man floated like a ball of  **crumpled**  paper hanging on a string._

_The way a powerful bomb is made from **unstable**  material._

_The sound of bones cracking and flesh twisting now **reverberated**  in the air, a  **chaotic**  melody of reality splitting,  **decaying** , birthing and  **then**  remaking, Amon's limbs were  **forced**  back to their natural state with a few crack and crunch of bone and joint realigning.  **Expulsion**  of the broken bones from his mouth and squish of organs returning to peak pre-puncture perfection._

_" **Epahser**!" I  **commanded** , and  **the**  word, written in  **English**  of all things, burned  **brightly**  in front of me in a white radiance. Tendrils of  **light**  squirmed its way out of it and touch Amon's chest and the last bones was forced back into position._

_I admired my handy work as the **tendrils**  went into his chest, passing through with a  **ghostly**  presence. "Time to  **wake**  up. There is  **much**  to discuss." I  **asked**  calmly._

_His eyes jolted to life with peerless energy as the symbols **faded**  away, turning into dust that  **mixed**  with the surrounding ash._

_"Now then, let's talk about that ' **gift of the spirits** ' you covet so much." I picked up an ornate cup and poured some  **jasmine tea**. "I do wonder how a blood bender mimics energy bending, wouldn't you?"_

_Amon said **nothing**. I felt him  **trying**  to break out of my mental grip. Struggling as he  **floated**  in the air._

_I **let**  out a sigh. "I'll  **preheat**  the teapot" I snapped my  **fingers**  and a small stove appeared. I  **conjured**  another pot of water and placed it on the stove. "So… what's your  **favorite**  tea?"_


	3. Ghost of the pasts

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Eclipso appeals to the past of Amon to join force's. Meanwhile, a ghost from Elios past haunts his future, and Rio must decide her feelings on her fallen cousin.

P.O.V: Amon

 

The masked man known as Amon to Republic City, real name Noahtok, was floating in the air. His limbs bound by an invisible force, as a spirit made of shadows watched a teapot boil. The spirit itself was floating in front of a stove it conjured from thin air. Near the corner of an ash-covered library nook. A small table of cakes with a black diamond centerpiece stood between Amon and the spirit.

 

All of this madness preceded by a swamp tribe teenager with fire bending. Who at one moment asked for his bending to be taken, Amon was still trying to mull over how the tribesman even learned that he could do that. 

 

It was even worse when the swamp man apparently could tell it wasn’t a gift of the spirit that took away his fire bending. Then it reached its bottom point when the soft-spoken, simple-minded swamp man took down all his grunts and the Lieutenant single-handedly. 

 

Amon disguised his bending negation as a spiritual gift because he thought such an act would be miraculous enough to be taken at face value. Only the avatar or someone truly one with the spirits could do something so unheard of. Then came a backwater firebender who found out after going through it.

 

And then the voice of Amon’s father and an arm that looked like said father’s dragged Amon into the swamp man's empty face. While it was glowing bright light. 

 

Amon was currently wrestling with a redefined reality. The fire-cherry on top of it all being his whole body twisted like bread dough into the swamp man's face and being sent through a portal. The other end of the portal, a man-made of shadows that painfully ‘untwisted’ him to his normal shape while keeping him captive.

 

Not even getting into the agonizing pain that was being forced into a small space and then being unraveled. 

 

In a nutshell, he wasn’t quite sure what was impossible at this point. A lion turtle telling him the secrets of the universe would be mundane in comparison. 

 

After the initial shock, Amon did adjust, not viewing it as normal, he saw it as an annoyance. An obstacle that was keeping him from goals. He already realized that the spirit wanted him for some sort of deal. 

 

If the spirit wanted him dead it would have just let Amon in his twisted state to die from the pain. He also was setting up a tea party. While not used that often in the present many secret cells conducted their business in plain sight with paisho and tea. It was how the white lotus hid their meetings during the great war for so many years.

 

The only question was what deal the spirit wanted. 

 

“ _ Oh, what  _ **_I want_ ** _ is quite simple. _ ” The spirit remarked with smarm in his smile. His form was altogether unnatural. Wisping in the air, shifting slightly its shape every second. But its smile was most unnerving, it never moved when the spirit spoke and was trapped into a permanent grin of stain teeth.

 

“ _ I want to help you with your  _ **_goals_ ** _.”  _ Amon didn’t respond. The spirit got closer to the masked man, its face parallel to his. Amon had a much closer look at the visage of the spirit. 

 

  From a distance, there were symbols on the spirit's joint areas but with a closer look, he saw there were even more. Dozens if not hundreds in the smoke like the body, gliding on the surface. Even the spirit's eyes were symbols. On the right side of the spirits face a glowing dot of light with a central black dot. On the left side a crescent moon with the same glow. 

 

The glowing lights had a sickly pale light, it mimicked the moonlight light in the Erie night. The same light he remembers from his childhood in the south pole. Sickly, frosty and waning. 

 

“ _ The tea is done my masked  _ **_comrade_ ** _ in chaos. _ ” Amon didn’t respond. “  _ There is no reason to be shy  _ **_Noahtok-_ ** _ ” _

 

“Noahtok is dead,” Amon rebutted calmly. 

 

“ **_Honestly_ ** _ , I thought it would take more work than  _ **_that_ ** _ to get you to talk _ .” The spirit sounded genuinely disappointed despite his unmoving smile. 

 

“Do you have a purpose for keeping me here.” Amon’s remark ran dry, annoyance clear in his tone as the spirit matched his stare. 

 

“ _My name is_ ** _Eclipso_** _and I have a deal, one that not that can help you with your_ ** _doomed_** _revolution.”_ Amon’s unseen eyebrows rose at the word doomed. “ _Have some_ ** _tea_** _, eat cake_ _and listen to my pitch and I’ll let you go regardless. In_ ** _fact_** _,”_ With the snap of spectral fingers, Amon was freed from the restraining force. He landed on his feet with precise grace.

 

“I'll give you five minutes.” Eclipso beamed his smile at Amon’s declaration.

 

“ _ I'll only need  _ **_one_ ** .” The spirit waved his hand as two chairs flung themselves to the table between them. “ _ To  _ **_make_ ** _ things quick, you plan on making a rally in a week to show off your... _ **_gift_ ** _ from the spirits, you then  _ **_plan_ ** _ in three weeks to crash the pro-bending competition. Of course taking the  _ **_champions_ ** _ bending, which will be the  _ **_Wolfbats_ ** _ because they pay off the refs so they can pull off their  _ **_obvious_ ** _ cheating. _ ” Eclipso spoke at a rapid pace, not leaving a second of pause. The words nearly slurring together into a mess of syllabus and scrambled phonetics.  

 

“Interesting theor-” a visible hand force lifted Amon’s mask by the chin as a small cake flew into his mouth.

 

“ _ You have contingency plans after contingency plans about whether the  _ **_Avatar_ ** _ gets involved or not. Councilman Tarrlok is your  _ **_brother_ ** _ ,  _ **_Yukone_ ** _ the bloodbending criminal was your father and to top it all off you use bloodbending to take people bending, And you do it under this savior from the spirits  _ **_schtick_ ** _.”  _ As Eclipso resumed his high-speed monologue the cake forced itself deeper into Amon’s mouth.

 

“  _ What did _ **_I_ ** _ miss?  _ **_Oh_ ** _ ,  _ **_yes_ ** _ ,  _ **_yes_ ** _ ,  _ **_yes_ ** _ it was the fact that it all leads to nothing.”  _ Eclipso beamed from his unchanging smile. His voice carrying a melodic tone that rattled into Amon’s mind. 

 

Amon knew he couldn’t deny the spirit monologue entirely. His information on him and of his plan was spot-on if a bit embellished and simplified. 

 

“ _ Oh that's because the  _ **_Avatar_ ** _ is coming tomorrow. In the  _ **_morning_ ** _ actually- _ ” The sound of Amon forcing the cake down interrupted Eclipso.  

 

“So my thoughts are yours to read. Is that supposed to impress me?” Amon’s voice was slightly horsed from the forced swallow.

 

“ _ Well that and telling the  _ **_future_ ** _ ,  _ **_accurate_ ** _ to the day, As well as alerting you to your  _ **_biggest_ ** _ obstacle, but you don’t  _ **_seem_ ** _ convinced _ .” 

 

“ Your ‘gift’ doesn’t sway me, any decent integrator or spy could tell this information. And besides, My revolution is not doomed until I’m in the ground rotting.”

 

_ “ _ **_Ha_ ** _ ,  _ **_Ha_ ** _ I’ll give you that much. I do have to thank you for taking away the boy’s  _ **_burden_ ** _. I imagine  _ **_Ravana’s_ ** _ going to have the most peaceful sleep he ever had after his ‘curse’ being removed.” _

 

“The swamp man with firebending.”

 

“ _Yes, the man who only dress in_ ** _leather_** _with closeted daddy issues. He can’t be the_ ** _strangest_** _thing to you. Those pro-bending_ _brothers, The_ ** _flame rats_** _? are benders of different elements and no one questions that. Ravana simply had what he viewed as a_ ** _curse_** _, and his training_ ** _required_** _him to give up an aspect of himself to make room for something else. So who better than the_ ** _savior_** _known as Amon to free him of his shame.”_ The way that Eclipso spoke the word savior had a tint of annoyance in it. Like the realization that a fly landed on his food.

 

“Training? A curse? You dare use me to further some idiotic form of training.” Amon’s cold and even voice was getting more heated with each revelation going through his head. It felt as though the words that Eclipso spoke forced a hand inside his mind, clawing its way out. Was the spirit forcing him to feel this way? Forcing his anger out of him. 

 

“ _ Yes  _ **_and_ ** _ no, I did  _ **_‘use’_ ** _ you. Just  _ **_not_ ** _ in that way. And you can  _ **_help_ ** _ a lot more if you join me.” _

 

“One. Good. Reason. Give me that and I might give you the time of day.” 

“ _ Tarrlok’s going to  _ **_kill_ ** _ you _ .” Eclipso said immediately. No hesitation, no build-up, no hint of doubt.  _ “With your  _ **_consent_ ** _ no less _ !”

 

“Now I know your spouting lie-” Eclipso blew on his tea and the fumes from it spread out to envelop Amon. Surrounding him and filling the space around him. He heard several, overlapping voices in the fumes. All he heard were random chatter until one pierced the fog.  

 

“It will be just like the good old days.” Amons heard a familiar voice. The voice held a bit more base the last time he heard but he knew its source well. The space around him swirled into a new scene.

 

He was steering a speeder boat off the coast of Republic city. Smoke and fire in the distance. Every aspect of it was frozen in place like a photograph. Still in time, with him being the only one aware.behind with were shelves of Equalist tech. Tech That was currently being made last time he checked. Then he saw the scene’s defined center.

 

In art there’s usually a point of focus, the main subject of the work. The person in a portrait for example. Tarrlok sat at the center of the back seat with an electro-glove over the fuel tank. He could tell the intention from the look of resignation and finality on his brother's face.

 

He was surprised when he first heard that he became a politician, councilmen of the city no less. In the back of his mind, he was always aware that he would eventually have to face during the final stage of the plan. 

 

And yet here he was, shocked at the turn of events. He thought about kidnapping him a few times but the timing was always wrong. Not to mention the headache that would have been making sure to mask the voice and ability from someone who knew Amon’s past life.

 

A dozen questions rushed in Amon’s mind about how this turned about. He had nothing to work with aside for the sight of Republic city in disarray.  _ Did the revolution fail? Was it because of the avatar? Did Eclipso do this? Did...tarrlok accomplish this? _ Amon felt mixed feelings toward his brother. The fact he could not leave the monster of a father proved he was a born coward, his rise as a politician proves he was a born liar. And yet the thought the image of him about to ignite the engines in a suicide pact was right in front of him.

 

“ _ If you wish for  _ **_clarification_ ** _ , it will come in  _ **_due_ ** _ tim _ e.” The voice of Eclipso had nobody to come from. It echoed as if from the sky above him. “ _ I'll grant you a  _ **_generous_ ** _ bargain, A  _ **_free_ ** _ glimpse into the next week and a half with no catch. It won't change the timeline too much but it makes things go much more  _ **_smoothly_ ** _ for you then in the original timeline.” _ Smoke spilled out of the gas tanker, the same runes that dotted Eclipso appearing in it.

 

_ “ _ Original Timeline _?”  _

 

“ ** _Right_** _, Science fiction is not a_ ** _genre_** _in your universe. I am going to_ ** _extrapolate_** _great pleasure in explaining the multiverse to you when you give me the chance.”_ Eclipso head formed itself out of the gas. It wrapped around Amon, his gaseous, elongated neck wrapping around him as he spoke. 

 

“Your nothing more than a fever dream.” Amon said coldly looking down at the snake-like Eclipso.

 

“ _ Don’t worry after this it will all seem like a  _ **_horrendous_ ** _ dream.”  _ A shadow-like hand appeared from the gas.  _ “ Simply see what the next  _ **_week_ ** _ has in store,  _ **_experience_ ** _ it and make a decision. It's not as fun if the players don’t know what the  _ **_game_ ** _ has in store for them.”  _ The hand grabbed Amon’s forehead, pain surged into the water tribe man with a sudden surge of information.

 

A boy with bronze skin and golden eyes. A girl with black skin and blue eyes. Both of them at the rally in a week. The boy standing on stage pointed toward an earthbender tied down. The girl unleashed a torrent into the building. A boy with a great power watching as a figure with iron skin towered over him.

 

At first, the broad information filled his mind but as the transfer continued the details came in like pins. Sharp in numerous spots flared in Amon’s mind. The same day as the revelation, The grunts accidentally take a Rube named Bolin along with the gangsters. The avatar will be in the crowd to get her friend. Ravana and Eclipso will be watching from the rafters. 

 

With or without his say.

 

As the details started to form in his mind the transfer slowed down its pace. A slight respite, the pain was still in Amon’s mind but the intensity changed from the banging of an anvil to a minor headache. An annoyance.

 

“ **_Now_ ** _ , you're ‘ _ **_Revelation’_ ** _ will be a true event worth waiting for.”  _ As Amon regained his focus the boat and his brother were gone. He was back at the library again, Eclipso still sipping tea with cakes. 

 

With a snap of his fingers a portal opened behind him.

 

“ _ If you like that bit of  _ **_information_ ** _ here’s another. I grow stronger the more negative emotion I'm near. I assure you that the fear, anger, and disdain you showed gave me the boost needed to make this portal.”  _ Eclipso wiggled his fingers. “ _ Less  _ **_tortuous_ ** _ , don’t worry your subordinates won’t remember  _ **_Ravana_ ** _ or how he sucked you into his face. _ ” Amon felt that Eclipso’s wording was intentional.   

 

“Why?” Amon asked as he took steps toward the portal. He wasn’t sure if it was safe but given all, he saw the spirit could kill him with a thought. Why waste telling such information to a person you're going to kill. 

 

Also despite the madness, he saw he did not sense murderous intent. Malicious intent but not murderous. The personality of this Eclipso seems more likely to play with their food rather than be quick with it. 

 

Eclipso looked at him with a smile. “ _ I rather  _ **_humans_ ** _ to be true to their nature. Power does not always  _ **_corrupt_ ** _ but it does always  _ **_reveal_ ** _. I want to see what you do with the knowledge of your  _ **_outcome_ ** _.”  _ Eclipso then started to grimace, the act of which turned the tea in his hand to ash. “ _ I rather  _ **_dislike_ ** _ humans as a whole but I love people. The  _ **_golden_ ** _ boy you’ll meet reopened my eyes to that, I respect the  _ **_outliers_ ** _ of your species with a passion.” _

 

“Outliers?”

 

_ “The  _ **_unique_ ** _ should be cultivated, we can’t have a world of  _ **_boring_ ** _ ,  _ **_orderly_ ** _ ,  _ **_john smiths_ ** _. It would be the death of my  _ **_reason_ ** _ for being.”  _ A thought formed in Amon’s mind.

 

“What are you the spirit of?” Eclipso’s smirk came even larger and pointed than before.

 

_ “Ask yourself, what is the opposite of order? Freedom or chaos?”  _ Amon didn’t have an answer and given his goal it should properly stay that way, the spirit would twist any answer he would have given. Amon’s thought it over Eclipso spun his chair away from Amon’s direct line of sight and waved him off.

 

_ “Have fun as a doomed terrorist cell. You know, maybe if actually acted like people who the common folk could view as a hero...no it won’t work keep doing what you are doing. I'm sure the avatar will appreciate that she won’t have to work that hard to beat you.”  _ Eclipso gloated as Amon clenched his fist. 

 

The portal reacted, becoming a warm purple hue.

 

Before Amon stepped into the portal he turned to face Eclipso one last time.

 

“You’ll have my answer when I deem you worthy of my time.”

 

“ _ Whatever ensures you have a  _ **_shred_ ** _ of confidence.”  _ Eclipso snapped back at him as a bowl of mercury floated back to him _. “We all have a  _ **_need_ ** _ for a bit more time, Noahtok.”  _ Amon bristled but kept his anger within, the portals purple glowing brighter.

 

 He watched Eclipso stare into the bowl with great care as he himself walked into the portal. Already planning some adjustments to some of his plans.

 

As Amon met his subordinates again, who were nursing wounds they don't remember getting, Rio was experiencing a crossroads with a spirit who claims to be Elio's mother. 

 

P.O.V: Rio 

 

Rio has a...complicated relationship with Elio. Even then that barely scratched the surface. He was quite literally the first friendly person she met when the whole “your a demigod” bomb dropped. He actually acted a bit like a lighthouse in a sea of madness. At first.

 

Then he started to act strangely when they actually got to camp half-blood mumbling, sneaking into cabins, acting like another person entirely in some scenarios. Despite all that he was still friendly and kind to Rio. He said It was because they were, which confused Rio, since all the other half-blood kids were technically family and he refused to speak or acknowledge them. 

 

Aside from mister D who Elio actually treated like a god, He was but the other kids kinda treated him like any other camp counselor would be treated with a tingle of fear of becoming a dolphin. Did the whole bowing down and calling him “lord”. Probably why mister D actually didn’t mind his behavior towards others. 

 

To make a long story short he went down a spiral of bad decisions that nearly burned down the forest around the camp. As punishment, they were supposed to help a junior protector gather some half-blood for the next few months in addition to remedial classes. Elio knocked out the guide and Rio. 

 

Next thing Rio remembered was Elio arguing with himself while holding a knife over her, a surge of lighting and then falling into the ocean from the sky...somehow. 

 

Now she stood, trident at hand, between a spirit that claimed to be Elio’s mother and said, boy. 

 

“ _ ‘Ell you what you girl. I show the boy’s greatest shame and if you give me him. You go home, no tricks, no traps, I even swear on the river Styx.”  _ Eldora’s words rang in Rio’s ear as she weighed her options. 

 

For all, she knew Elio tried to kill her in a ritual and was slowly going insane. He even told her he made a deal with what looked to be a demon as a defense. Even if he wasn't evil per se and just a bit stupid, that stupidity might get her killed. 

 

“ _ I only have so much patience girl.”  _ The spirit urged.

 

“Why do you want him?” Rio snapped at the spirit-raising trident. The spirit snickered. A thought that might buy them some time flashed in Rio’s mind. “I mean you are so powerful already why would you need this dead weight.” She remarked pointing at a very surprised Elio, still hoisted up by Yue. The spirit kept a close eye on Eldora.

 

“  _ Me troubles all began and ended with that sack of pus and blood. My blood, no my soul demands his sanguine essence to-”  _ She began to monologue. At Camp half-blood Rio had a class where they taught how to escape and elude monsters. A lot of them have big egos so an idea proposed was to get them to monologue, get them nice and distracted while thinking for long term solutions.

 

Sure enough, the spirit of Eldora rambled on and on, tangent after tangent. From her yammering on the decaying state of the secular world to the failures and inherent evil of western civilization. Somehow tying it back to how the freemason were the masterminds behind Unabomber. Both things Rio didn’t know or care about.

 

Rio used the time to assess their current situation. The dome around them from Elio's spell was still there but waning at a slow rate revealing the night sky. Yue still had her eyes on Eldora while trying to hide a teacup behind her arm. Rio didn’t understand why until she saw that the liquid inside was glowing.

 

Whatever the tea was it was important, important enough for Eldora not to know. 

 

She then thought about Eldora’s offer again. She didn't know if Eldora was something she could fight or if she could win that fight. Elio did all the leg work on the capture the flag stents and her only combat experience was training. She also wasn’t sure how the whole eclipso, portal and the other world bit was related. Giving Elio to Eldora will remove any answers and there was barely any reason for Rio to trust her outside of Elio being not much better in the same category. 

 

The lady, even in ghost form, looked like the headliner for a murderer's weekly catalog. You won’t believe these tips to spice your killing spree. 

 

“ _ Which Den shows Dat De horses will take over De triumvirate De first chance Dey-” _

 

“Prove to me he’s evil!” Rio snapped at Eldora.

 

“ _ Of course their evil! All horses are evil by their nature.”  _ Eldora remarked with a mocking grimace. 

 

“No, your son, what the hell is a triumvirate?” Eldora ignored Rio’s question and looked at Elio with her dagger at the ready.

 

_ “Dat be it? Child’s play, he is da reason my spirit is untethered.”  _ Eldora brushed away some of her hair to reveal that her neck was crooked. As her neck was snapped at some point and with the marks on it quite forcefully. 

 

“I did all I could!” Elio spoke up cough right after from the effort. 

 

_ “The boy be a mirror of his father.”  _ Eldora made a circle in the fog around them and within that circle was a stained glass portrait of Hyperion, the titan of the east and light. 

 

Rio gave Eldora credit, that they did look alike. It honestly kinda freaked her out. Curly dark hair, strong, sharp facial features and hypnotic eyes that had golden shine. The eyes were also the greatest difference, the fact that Hyperion had a bushy beard notwithstanding. Hyperion also had the eyes of a bruiser, someone who took a to b solution. The type of man who always chose fist as his answer.

 

Elio was different in that they had range. Rio once saw how in a single sentence how they went from melancholic, prideful, endearing to cunning. Hyperion was trapped in a state of permanent thug while Elio was the two-faced snitch and info broker. At least in her mind

 

“ _Both be nothing more dan pathetic followers who grabbed at power when it suited them.”_ The stained glass changed to show Hyperion at one end of a jail cell with Eldora at the other side of the bars holding a key. “ _In_ _exchange for helping to loosen his prison’s security and his brother’s I got De perfect ingredient for spell work a magi could ask for.”_

 

“What would that be?” Rio searched her mind for any clue or any hints that Elio may have given for her answer. Sadly his family life was tightlipped, he always moved the subject to something else. 

 

“ _ Give me De boy and we gon have a good time. I'll show you first hand!”  _ Eldora held out the hand with the knife over her head with a large smile. Rio held her trident higher. 

 

“Show me.” Eldora gave Rio an impatient glare, her knife still held overhead. “You said you would show me Elio’s greatest shame. I’m sick of magical, vague bullshit. Do you want a deal? Then no more vague answers, no more jump around the bush, just show me it and ill decide how this bastard dies. Deal?” Rio held out her hand while keeping the other one glued to her trident in a striking stance. 

 

Another thing Rio learned about mythical creatures is that they love deals, as well as the chances to prove their better than others. Their prideful murderers, who need to prove their best at every moment. Rio just also understood that it implies to people just as well.

 

For whatever reason, she hated Elio and wanted to assert that she was better than him. An easy springboard for a “pride cometh before the fall” moment. 

 

Eldora stared at the girl’s hand with a quick moment of contempt. It quickly compounded with murderous rage when it flashed at the still cradled Elio. Eldora moved her knife to a striking pose to her side.

 

“ _ What stops me from just killing you now,” Eldora said coldly.  _ Her eyes carrying a dagger-like, sharpness that nearly made Rio falter in her stance. Rio heard a lumbering form moving behind her. 

 

“You make threats in  **my** territory.” Rio heard the bellowing voice of Yue in her mind. A tone she did not expect from the turtle spirit, authorial. Power and rank radiated from the spirit. It didn’t cancel out the barrier of dread around them but it made it less overpowering. 

 

Rio's shaking and Elio's condition seemed to improve as well as the spirit stood her ground.

“What I wanted from these beings was a story to test their character, I allow it to continue to exist in order to facilitate that. Make the deal with the girl and I won’t interfere.” Eldora looked confused by the words of the spirit.

 

“ _ You be telling me now dat you’ de be with her giving the boy to me.”  _ The spirit turned her focus to Rio with an unflinching look of assurance. 

 

“I have seen enough to see her character, I will stand by her choice so long as you also honor the deal with a stipulation.”

 

_ “Oh, and what kind of stipulation would dat be turtle mon.” _

 

“If she chose to spare Elio you go back to whence you came,  Aspect of shame.” Eldora stared at Yue with an evil glare but sighed in resignation. Her eyes trying to burrow through the determination of Yue. The turtle barely moved with Elio still cradling in the spirit arms drinking tea with shaking hands.

 

“ _ Fine, Fine.”  _ Eldora relented. “ _ Only because you be a true spirit.”  _ Yue determined glare switched to an inquisitive eyebrow raised. “ _ De boy’s father be a low ranking divine being.”  _ The mirror image shifted into a swirling mass of clouds.  _ “He be pathetic even by Titian standards _ , _ but even low divine beings are still divine be powerful. All my life I have lacked such things, I always lacked power.” _

 

The mirror showed a younger-looking Eldora on top of a circle of chalk runes. The image disturbed Rio as she looked to be around her age.  _ She was 17… how old was she when she had Elio?  _ Rio thought to herself.

 

As if the universe itself answered, the next image showed within a few seconds of making that circle was that a man held by chains appeared before her.

 

“ _ I didn’t know him as Hyperion, He told me that he was a god of the sun chained in the deep places of the mystic earth. He told me, in exchange for loosening the chains he would give me the power I sought out. _ ”

 

“Wait, power?” Eldora shot Rio a look. “ I mean, you have so much power already, why would you need help to get more.” Eldora looked faded as a stare of determination burned in her eyes. 

 

“ _ I sought power for its own merit. I was descended from the true people of my home and yet still lived in squalor on the far side of ‘ _ **_Puerto Rico’,”_ ** She said with disdain. _ “ I should have been the island Cacica, the grand chieftess, but no. I had the indignity of living in a shack, practicing the dead magic of a dying people.”  _

 

The image of the chained Hyperion shifted once more as she spoke.

 

The new image was of Eldora, holding a newborn baby on her left arm. She was stirring a bowl of metallic liquid with her right. Her face was tired and strained, the left eye in a constant twitch. The room around them was dilapidated, papers, books, and strange symbols up and down the walls. 

 

“ _ Squalor _ !” Eldora spat out as she spread her arms as her past self looked halfway into an early grave. 

 

_ Did she die from stress and blame Elio for it?  _ Rio thought to herself.  _ No that's too easy, it's something else. It's gotta be something else to it...right?  _

 

“ _ Dem De final insult _ .” She stared down at Elio that Rio was half sure that Eldora tried to light him on fire by will alone. And for all she knew she could. “ _ A failure of a child, a bastard by blood, a bastard to his deepest core _ .” Her stare held a vengeful disdain.  

 

The image went through a slight shift again, a few years ahead if the now 8-9-year-old version of Elio in front was to go by. 

 

“ _ I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry.”  _ The voice sounded similar to Elio’s but higher pitched and had the same ethereal vibration that the ghost Eldora's voice has. When Rio looked down she saw the source of the boy’s pleading. 

 

Spilled juice on some old tomes and papers, slowly destroying them in a pink puddle. 

 

Rio saw Eldora standing over as the ghost stood right to the copy. Both crossing their arms in beleaguered annoyance, both staring down the boys with plain hatred.

 

_ “Always so useless, always such an annoyance, can’t even hold a glass of juice without destroying something. Such a useless boy _ .” The past and ghost version of Eldora said in unison. “ _ Don’t you agree _ ?” The ghost looked Rio dead on for an answer. 

 

Rio looked back to Elio and Yue, the turtle spirit absorbing the information attentively while the color was returning to Elio. Maybe if she bought more time she and Elio could take her down.  _ I'll play along with her for now.   _ Rio thought to herself.

 

“Yeah can be pretty useless when you need him the most but that is what I mean what makes him evil.” Eldora gave a blank stare. “I mean this is great and all, very solid evidence deserving what he got but is the crem de la creme of his sins. The one that damns the core of his soul.” Saying these things out loud was making Rio visibly cringe but the ghost didn’t seem to notice.

 

The image around Rio shifted again once more but backward, back to when Eldora was stirring the metallic liquid.

 

“ _ I used a considerable amount of power to see the prospect of De boy, to search for all De possibilities Dat might arise.”  _ The image of the bowl enlarges to the point of being swimming pool-sized, like when an image was blown up on a computer. _ “What I saw told all I need to know, De boy is destined to fail.”  _

 

 All at once within the bowl, Rio saw what Eldora meant. The bowl had endless images of Elio being killed or maimed, his arms ripped off by cyclops, legs melted in acid spit, his head chopped off by a kid in a half-blood t-shirt. And a hundred other scenes of the death being played out, aside from one.

 

One image didn’t show Elio’s death, one out of hundreds in the pool. It was an image beneath the hanging body of a dead Eldora. The version of Elio in that image looked preteen, maybe 11 or 12.

 

Rio started to sweat profusely.

 

“So essentially, in the version of the world where he lives, you die.”  

 

“ _ I did what I had to do. _ ” Eldora said coldly, her words chilling Rio’s blood. 

 

“But wait, you're dead. What did happen?” Rio's real emotions mixed into her acting, she was now curious about what happened to Eldora and was bad at hiding that fact from the ghost.

 

“ _ I refuse a girl of your stature who is Dat dull in De mind. _ ” The ghost pointed to her spectral, broken neck. “ _ This is what happened.”  _ An ominous feeling crawled all over Rio’s back as the realization settled in. 

 

Elio killed her.  _ No.No.No.No.  _ Rio thought to herself.  _ That burro is many things but a mindless murder is not one of them. There must have been a reason.  _

 

_ “ It is true girl, De boy has committed sins of any pantheon. Killing one's parents, his own mother.”  _ Rio remembered a story called the oretisa from half-blood. The story was about, despite having the go-ahead by the gods, A hero was still hounded by the furies for his crime of matricide. It was that serious of a crime, not even the gods can stop the people in charge of enforcing the punishment for it. 

 

Rio looked back to Elio, who was now on his knees, tears in his eyes. There was denying that he had made the same mistake as Orestes. The guilt was plain on his face as bright as his golden eyes. 

 

“I'm sorry.” was all he said in defense. Eldora snapped her fingers as, what Rio could feel was, the final scene plays out. 

 

“ _ De boy would threaten my life one day _ ,  _ so I resolved to change that route.”  _ Eldora stared deeply into her knife, her gaze traveling the edge of the blade. “ _ De one way I knew. _ ”

 

Rio saw a 10-12-year-old Elio standing near a cliffside right next to a beleaguered and unstable Eldora. The ghost in front of Rio had an air of class and dignity to her. The past version of her next to the young Elio was a mess. Her hair was in endless knots, her eyes had bags the size of kiwi’s, complete with a look that went off in every direction. Like she had a delusion of the mosquitoes and flies working in league with each other to destroy her. 

 

The younger Elio stood at the edge of a cliff as Eldora hovered over him. Both standing on the side of a dirt road, overlooking a swamp. The sun setting over the horizon, giving the sky a crimson hue. 

 

The young Elio was shivering, shaking in place as his mother looked out to the edge of the cliff. The fear clear in his reflective eyes, knowing something was wrong. 

 

Eldora places her hands on the back of his neck. “Elio, my little Nino.” Her words were layered with a honeyed tone, a softness that Rio hadn't seen the hint of until now. The change startled her but reminded her of Elio’s mood shifts when he was speaking with certain people. They had the same comforting, false smile that drew you in so they could poke and prod what they needed. 

 

“You would do anything for mommy right?” Eldora spoke right next to Eilo’s ear. Her words were slow and deliberate, every syllable held deliberate weight. It felt like hooks were sinking into Rio’s ear as she listened. 

 

“ Do...do...do you need more…. mommy?” The boy sputtered out.

“Yes but don’t worry it will be De last leeching. After dis, I won’t be needing anymore.” Eldora pulled out a knife from her sleeve. A sleeker, polished version of the one the ghost Eldora had. 

 

“You promise?” 

 

“Get on your knees and you will know.” Eldora gave a warm smile to the young boy as she slightly pressured him to get on his knees. A mixture of caution and fear was still in his eyes.

 

“You….did what you thought was right?” Rio said as she tried her damndest to keep her composure as she watched the scene play out. She almost felt the knife behind her own back.

 

“Just lye perfectly still mi Nino.” Eldora held the knife ready to strike on the younger Elio’s back. 

 

“No!” The child yelped. For a brief second the image of Eldora stopped and started at Elio.

 

“ _ No,  _ After all, I did for you. Keeping you safe, making sure you were fed, educating your pathetic mind.” The smile went away and was replaced with a permanent scowl of disgust.

 

“Pl-Pl-please It hurts!” 

 

“I've told you that it will be over soon, now sit still-” Elio wrestled his way out of Eldora's grip before he could run away, however she grabbed the back of his shirt. “ Don’t you dare think that you can get away.” She spoke through gritted teeth as Elio tried to make the distance between him and Eldora.

 

Eldora made a strike at Elio’s back but missed in a way where the attack only managed to cut open his shirt. Revealing his back in full detail.

 

For one reason or another Elio refused to show his back the whole time they were at camp. He Avoided anything that might force him to take off his shirt. He even kept it on when it got wet. 

 

She now saw why he kept his back a secret from everyone. 

 

There were scars on his back, ugly barely healed scars. Rough stitches kept them from opening up but the stitch's work was shoddy at best. It could come apart at the slightest of wrong movements.

 

Before Rio could take in more of his stitches he and Eldora manage to trip over themselves from the ungraceful scuffle. Eldora from taking a too forceful lunge and Elio from not realizing how steep the cliff was.   

 

They both tumbled down into the forest below. The image shifted to the young Elio floating in the swamp river under the cover of mangrove trees. Spindly trees that had roots under the water’s surface, vines connecting the other plants to the swamp water like a tangled web. 

 

Rio watched as the young Elio slowly woke up as he clutched his back. It wasn’t hard to see why. The boy’s stitches were opened up and bleeding in a small streak running down into the water. 

 

The look of fear on the boy's eyes was as clear as the light of the moon in the sky. 

 

“Mommy?” He said sheepishly, nearly murmuring. “Mommy? where are you?” The little boy yammered as he wandered for a good bit amount of time until he saw a tangled shape above him. Rio looked as well as Yue, The present-day Elio kept his eyes to the ground, the look of shame reaching its zenith.

 

Rio understood when she saw what was tangled in the vines. The partially broken body of Eldora was inside a small ball of tree vines and branches, her left arm bent in the wrong direction as well as both her legs. Much like the child Elio, she was bleeding profusely, dripping blood into the darkened water.   

 

“Lit-lit-lit... Little bastard.” Just from the sound of Eldora's voice, Rio felt the pain that was affecting her. The wheezing, slight gurgling bubbling in the woman’s throat. Rio saw the eyes Eldora was staring down Elio with. Cold and vengeful eye, so crossed that they nearly looked reptilian. “I'll...make this...day ...your...last” The more the woman talked the more her life left her. The grip of her knife was even loosening. 

 

“I-I-I’ll get you down!” The little Elio scrambled to the vines but they were too high for him to grab. He flailed about in vain to grab just a single one. 

 

Rio heard the murmuring of Eldora as her child tried to get her down. Her cold eyes were now filled with fear. The little Elio managed to grab one of the main vines near her. 

 

“No...No...No...No. I refuse to be the one who perishes.” For a brief moment, color and vigor returned to her body as she wildly started to slash and stab at the vines. “Stay away!” She screamed out. Her knife, coming dangerously close to slashing Elio’s face. 

 

By instinct, Elio cowered into the water, avoiding the slashes but pulling on the vine. The vine from what Rio could see was tethered to the important sections of the tangle of plants. The connecting thread of the forest. 

 

As Elio started to pull on it, the mass tightened. Which made Eldora scream out more, which made her slashed about, which made Elio duck further into the water. Rio watched the painfully circle play for a full, agonizing, trauma-inducing half a minute. 

 

It felt like it lasted an entirety. Eldora suspended in the forest glade, her foaming mouth, and wild slashing as the coldness of her eyes became milky and emptied. Like her eyes already gave up but her mind was refusing. The image burned itself into Rio’s mind.

 

Taunting her. 

 

“See girl! That boy killed me in cold blood. He committed the great sin of your pantheon! He has trapped you in this bizarre world! All while conspiring with demons, let me have him and I will use all my power-”

 

“Swear,” Rio replied slowly. Swear on the river Styx.” Eldora raised an eyebrow. 

 

“Why would I ever-”

 

“Swear that you are not lying” . Swear that you have the power to send me home. Swear that you are actually her.” Rio said coldly. 

 

“What are you talking about?” The ghost expression was stone-like.   

 

“She is right,” Yue added. “You are nothing more than the leftover self-hate of a boy who thought he killed his mother. The pain made manifest.” Eldora's face did not change as Elio's face reflected hers. A cold, stone-like realization creeping on both of them. 

 

“How long?” Elio said solemnly.

 

“ Since she was going on and on about conspiracy theories. This is not a human soul, it's someone's view of another… a distorted view.”

 

“How dare you.” The ghost sneered. “I am Eldora vivas, de witch of Borinquen, one of de last boricua Kalinago.” The ghost proclaimed as Yue reacted by grabbing her face. Rio watched as the turtle spirit bodied the ghost to the sand. “Let me go!” The ghost protested. 

 

“You are not a ghost.” The turtle said plainly, pity seeping into her words. “I have heard the story and I’ve decided who is the guilty one.” As Yue lectured the ghost Rio went to Elio's side to help prop him up.

 

“Do you still ha-” Rio shushed him.

 

“After that whole spiel...I'll give you one chance.” Elio gave a small smile. “But do that satanic shit again and I'll stab you where the sun chariot doesn't shine.” Elio's small smile remained.

 

“So long as I have the chance.” He remarked as he tried to stand on his own legs.

 

“Elio, Do you know where this came from?” Yue asked as she sat on the now struggling ghost. 

 

Elio's attention went straight to his feet as he sheepishly said. “Its the ghost of m-”

 

“Self-hate, regrets, and pain.” Elio immediately stared straight into Yue’s eyes. “ I can feel her essence, This is not a person’s chi but the chi of something foul, rancid, and degrading.” 

 

“Yeah, I think you lost both of us Yue.” Rio replied.

 

 “It's my negative energy that manifested itself, ” Elio explained concisely. “When I cast the spell, it drew on my memories to show them to you. It might have...I don’t know, given all the negativity around my mind a form when the spell drained me dry.” Rio looked at the trapped spirit and sighed. 

 

“Meaning what? How does that help us?” Elio held out his palm as the veins within it started to glow brightly from beneath the skin. 

 

“She is my energy given form, my thoughts, and feelings existing outside my mind.” He urged Rio to bring him closer to the pinned spirit. “All I had to do was-” when he got close enough to the spirit he grasped her head, palm facing forehead, as the veins glowed a sickly color now. 

 

“You need not move past these feelings, yet, but you should at least keep them contained until then.” Yue calmly explained as she slowly tore herself away from the ghost. 

 

“Thanks for the advice but this is because of a flaw in my magic not with my feelings.” He stared down at the ghost. “I learned how to bury those down a long time ago.” Rio didn’t believe the words coming out of his mouth. “ I was only frightened by...the thought she might be alive again.” Rio placed a hand on Elio’s shoulder as the last bits of the fake Eldora faded away to dust. 

“Look I’m confused right now but that whole thing, the things inside your head that clearly  _ need  _ a psychiatrist, prove to me at least that you're not the type to  _ intentionally  _ hurt someone for no reason.” Rio rubbed the back of her neck with her trident hand. 

 

“Rio, what I did is unforgivable.”

 

“Part of you, I'm never letting you get away with another demon schtick. Then again you're all I got aside from this turtle that we just met.” As Rio spoke the dome around them dissipated, the background of a jungle faded away as the midnight sky of the city was upon them.

 

“Yue, you said that you know a place we can stay right?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for such a delay. I didn't know how to continue the story and it didn't seem like anyone care but I will keep going till I think this story has reached its ending.


	4. Air temple island

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> After defeating the memory of Elio's mother Elio and Rio have reached an uneasy truce. The spirit known as Yue leads them to the isle of air acolytes while Rio makes a startling discovery.

It was a long, awkward trip to the island Yue spoke of. Neither Elio and Rio knew how to approach one another in their current state of shock. The short return of Elio's mother still rattled them. Rio with the truth she revealed while Elio still regretted the actions she recounted. The only thing they said to each other is what to do with their extra supplies? Where do they hide their armor and suspicious items?

Yue offered to hide them under the bay in a special bubble until they needed them. Their one pack holding only a small bit of ambrosia, books, glassware Elio was making and Rio's trident. Collapsed into a small metal rod.

Elio wore his gauntlets, collapsed into a set of metal on leather gloves. Like if the inside of the glove was taken out of the gauntlet with a few of the metal pieces.

Maybe these "Air nomads" would take glassware as rent, Thought Elio.

Rio thought about what to do next. Elio is good at thinking at the moment, she thought to herself. I might be able to trust him with at least keeping himself alive, maybe just copy him. She was a good student in a classroom but terrible at improvising. Straight A's until the creative classes came by.

It's why she was debating the whole Elio/demon debacle, how does one deal with that in a rational way while keeping him around. He said that he might have a way home but is it true or is he lying. Is he free from the demon? Or is it still there? With the whole ghost mom thing does that mean there are other demons in him without him knowing.

Deciding that she will deal with it in her leisure she decided to examine the city a bit better and the surrounding coast. She had trouble pinning down whether the buildings were more from the1920's or 1930's. they did not seem to be modern buildings at the very least.

What was the name for it again, Art something? Rio thought to herself. It reeked of new money, bright shining lights, gold highlights at the side of buildings. Then she noticed the details. Blimps in the sky with a weird symbol on their side, Asian calligraphy on the side of buildings and the smog of nearby factories that would make jersey look pro-tree.

Close to them was a gold arena on a boardwalk that would look at home in Vegas.

When she took in the scenery the more questions filled her mind. Yue and the bum from earlier understood what they said. Yet the writing was not English or Spanish. The languages that Rio and Elio both knew. It felt odd to Rio, the oddness bearing way to confusion as she felt a bit ...off feeling.

She felt that she was missing something, something important, like something from an old memory was being blocked. It was worse when she looked at the copper statue of the monk boy. Nagging at her.

"Are you troubled Miss Rio." Yue asked, bobbing her head in the water.

"Victoria." Rio said absent-mindedly as she stared at the monument.

"Huh? You're from a rich family." Rio nearly snapped her neck with the speed she met Yue's eyes.

"How did you know?"

"I didn't. You just told me." A flush of red was on Rio's face as the spirit smirked.

"I just have this weird feeling about all this ...more than I should." Rio emitted with a nervous breath.

"The monks at Air Temple Island can help you. I may be able to help you both so long as we keep this arrangement." Yue said as she rocked against the waves.

"I will help clean the beach but not for favors, it's just the right thing to do." Yue chuckled at Rio's words.

"There is no need to lie to a child. I know the hearts of humans and they feed off rewards and praise. I would ask a favor." Yue said abruptly, changing the jovial tone the spirit maintained until this point.

" Before we agree on that...why won't you show yourself to the monks." Elio asked, looking out to the water. Yue was silent. "I'm guessing it's related to the fact that the whole river got polluted and they did nothing." Yue swim speed shifted slightly, an uncountable shake that Elio and Rio both felt.

"The Avatar founded the island to help keep spiritual balance in this bay….he and his blood has failed. This is not the forested peninsula I once knew." Yue was solemn as she spoke her words. "I doubt most humans respect the spirits anymore. My favor is that you help when I need it and I help you in return. Also that you don't share your divine nature to the other humans." Both Rio and Elio raise their eyebrows to the statement.

"We weren't going to do that in the first place but why don't you want us to say anything about it?" Rio didn't show but she had the same question. The whole reason Yue wanted to talk to them was that Elio and her were demigods so why the need for secrets.

"...As I said they don't respect spirits anymore and I think they may be active against us now. At least they're against the hard work it takes to live alongside us. You may be half-human but you feel more spirit." Yue words echoed in both teenager's ears as the dock of the island was in view. "You two have an innate connection that humanity has lost as a whole. I trust you two."

"Okay so we will come over to help you and you do the same when we ask in return. Don't tell the people there what we are or else stuff happens." Rio listed off. " And...what else?"

"Maybe find a place here." Elio remarked. "We will try to get back but we must not leave out the possibility of-"

"I know that!" Rio shouted at him. "I know perfectly well that there might be no way of getting home but that does not mean I want to suddenly make a life in a place I don't when it looks hard. You made a promise!" Rio berated Elio.

"And this is where we separate. For now at least." Yue said as she slowly swam to a crawl. They were a good half of a mile from the island. A large spire at the center of a raised bit of stone. Since it was a night out, it was hard to get the details of the whole complex. The general layout out was easy enough to spot. Most of the buildings were to the left side of the island from the dock. To the right was a cove that was surrounded on both sides by natural, earthen barriers. All-around white sandy beaches.

It made both Elio and Rio nostalgic for their homeland.

"It actually looks...nice, just nice. Tranquil even." Rio stood at the center of Yue shell, gently lifting herself on the tips of her toes to get a better view. "It looks kinda like a place near El Yunque, you know those old caves." Elio had a more wistful look as he looked at the island with a growing sense of trepidation.

How will the people really react to them? Is this really a safe place? Why did he feel like something was watching him?

"Don't let your guard down. We don't know the rules of this world yet, for all we know the wrong move will throw us into unneeded trouble." Elio remarked as he walked off Yue's shell and stood on the surface of the water. Rio rolled her eyes.

"I know to keep my guard up but if anyone is going to get us in trouble it's you. Mister made an actual deal with a literal demon." Rio spat at him as a pillar of water enveloped her lower half. Gripping her like a vice while the water under Elio was squared off like a small platform.

"Thanks for everything Yue, I swear on the river Styx that we will uphold your deal." Elio said, looking back at the spirit, mentally preparing a story for the monks.

"I have faith that this place can help you two feel welcome." Yue chimed. " Simply accept their wisdom but don't be afraid to disagree with them. The patriarch of this island could use some humbling." Tie said as she slowly swam in the other direction, back toward the beach. Elio and Rio waved the spirit away as they slowly went toward the singular dock on Air Temple Island.

"One would think that a place like this would have more security. A single guard at least." Elio remarked as they both stared straight toward the barren dock.

"Please don't think out loud. It's creepy." Rio countered as she jumped onto the dock. Elio steps on the wood as the shouting a young girl blares in the air.

"We have visitors! Daddy, Daddy, Daddy look we got guests." At the end of the dock was a little girl jumping up and down in rapid succession. Brown hair in two rounded hair buns. A strange, full-body tunic, Elio guessed a uniform of some kind. Rio guessed a child-sized onesie.

"Play along." Elio whispered quickly as the girl ran at inhuman speed toward the two teenagers.

"Yay! New people! Where are you from? Did you go on a boat? Where's the boat? Why are you here? Why do you smell like burned fish? That's nasty." The girl's mouth ran a mile a minute while Rio and Elio's minds worked at a snail's pace to process the word vomit they were splattered with.

"My name is Elio and this is my cousin Rio. We heard that this island takes travelers, we just need a place to stay for a while." Elio put on a warm face, a slight smile, and an open stance. "If it won't be too much trouble. We used up all our money to get to the city but we don't have enough for a hotel." Elio squatted down to meet the child's eye. The girl couldn't be more than seven or eight. Eyes filled with excitement and wonder. Rio squatted down to also meet the girl's eyes.

"I'm his cousin, The lugs name is Elio and I'm Rio. If you can get your mommy and Daddy that would be-"

"Ikki! Don't run off like that!" Rio was cut off by the protective call of an older man. A bald, bearded man in similar clothing to the girl but with a flare of a cape that wrapped around his shoulder. An arrow painted on his forehead like the statue. He even resembled the statute to Rio. Elio even noticed it.

"You must be the famous patriarch of Air Temple Island." Elio said with an open stance like he was ready for a hug. The man looked at him a bit strangely but Elio led with his hand to shake the man's hand.

"I am councilman Tenzin yes." Elio mentally breathed a sigh of relief that he didn't have to guess the name of the man or coax of him.

"Nice to meet ya. Like I said to this cutie." Rio pointed to the little girl who had a bright smile. "My name is Rio Victoria and this is Eliodoro Vivas." Rio said, extending her own hand to Tenzin. With a raised eyebrow Tenzin shook both of their hands awkwardly.

"I...see. I assume that you're here for shelter if you're not then Tarlok is losing assistants even quicker than usual." The man said with a beleaguered sigh. "The first rule is that we don't eat meat and the second is-"

"That's it?" Rio said with confusion dead on her face.

"...Is this a problem?" Tenzin said with his eyebrow still perched on above the other. "Is that rule too much for you? You honestly sound like my uncle." Elio stepped in between the man and Rio.

"I think what my cousin is trying to say is that we were expecting a bit more screening than simply saying our names and getting a room." Elio explained turning his head slightly so only half of his face could give Rio a scolding look. Turned just enough that Tenzin and Ikki can't see the look.

"Well, one of the rules was that you have to help grow and cook the food that you will eat so there's that. You also clean your own rooms, You'll only get one pair of robes and are responsible for cleaning them yourselves and have the option to join in on morning meditations. Honestly, I could ask for more but you don't seem the type to try and rob a monastery whose only precious resources are people and bison." Tenzin explained in-depth.

While it was informative, it was almost too much for Rio to digest. Like how one nearly chokes on too much water or food.

"O-o-oh. Sorry, I'm just used to their being a lot of loopholes and arm wringing." Rio said awkwardly, rubbing her arm. "Can we skip to the room part then because we both had a rough day of traveling." Rio looked at Elio as she said all of this. Elio turned to both of them.

"We promise you that we won't disturb you two for too long just long enough to get on our feet and have a stable income." Elio showing his full face to the two again.

"Alright then come with me, Dinner is happening right now I only came here to get Ikki." Tenzin then turned to said girl. " Can you please not run from the table so unexpectedly? Especially to the dock?" Ikki stomped her foot on the ground.

"But there was a bright light in the sky and I thought I saw it again." The girl whined.

"That is still no reason to run off like that." Tenzin then turned to the two teenagers again.

"I might add watching the children to the list of chores if this continues. Now follow me." He turned to the steps behind him, long and arduous steps carved from stone. Elio and Rio followed close behind but kept a comfortable distance, whispering to each other.

"I have a backstory prepared. Multiple, actually." Elio said, putting his hands into his jean pockets. In his mind, he wondered why Tenzin didn't comment on them. Maybe they have jeans in this world if he wasn't curious, maybe he is just a naturally uncurious person.

"Oh, great lying already. Not even trying to pretend that they deserve the truth from us. Lies on lies." Rio smarmed.

"We are demigods from another world where gods are in charge of everything and we are here because I made a deal with a-" Rio made a timeout motion with her hands to stop him.

"I get the truth is too ridiculous to tell...and also Yue's deal. The dude seems nice though." Rio held her arms as she explained her disdain for this plan. Her thought on Elio's lies is still fuddled by a need to have someone to talk to. She was at least sure that she was going to make sure he makes no more lies they can't handle.

"it's simple, we come from a small island of tourists, traps, and traders. I convinced you to leave your comfortable life to live an independent life in the city but because of my own incompetence, we lost a lot of our savings." Elio explained quickly. The story was easy enough to follow and to repeat. Rio can fulfill the "pretend" to blame him part of his plan.

"Fine, we'll go with that, but I add all the other details. You're also my slow cousin." Rio said sternly as they made halfway up the stone steps.

"I'll play simple." Elio said simply.

"Deal." Rio said as they walked the last major flight of stairs. The main plaza of the temple grounds was actually alive with monks walking around. Among them were guards in white and blue colors. Their armor has a kind of rounded, floral theme. Elio was impressed by the craftsmanship.

To the right was a large octagon circle with a black and white circle at the center. A dot of black in the white half, a dot of white in the black half.

To the right were most of the buildings that people lived in. Tenzin gave a small bit of information on each building as they walked around.

"My father built this island by hands, using his bending to lay the groundwork while the white lotus built the actual building. He also brought many artifacts from the remaining air temple's for safekeeping and teaching purposes." Elio absorbed the information like a sponge. Taking note of the tone and verbiage to piece together with the world history with context alone.

Given the use of the word remaining, Elio made the guess that something terrible happened to the people who lived in said temples. Probably violence-related given the guards roaming the grounds.

Rio was just confused and annoyed as the information was making something in her heard screech like metal against a chalkboard. Like the statute, Like Tenzin himself. Something that demanded to be looked at but was covered by a deep fog.

"It's the biggest and onlyist home of Airbenders!" Ikki happily proclaimed. Elio was confused with the girl's cheeriness but caught one to the onlyistt bit. The man said bending like that bum Rio and Elio saw an hour ago, so it's a skill. Only implies either it's a skill that is hard to learn, you have to be born with or is unpopular for one reason or another.

"Is airbending really hard to do?" Elio said candidly with an elbow supported by his other arm. His hand stroking his chin.

"I imagine no harder than any other form of bending, excluding its more spiritual nature but that's neither here nor there. Are you two benders? I didn't see a boat so I'm guessing at least one of you is a water bender." Elio shrugged at the man's question.

"If you mean control over water then yes." Elio pointed his thumb at Rio who was very confused by this sudden admission. "She can do that. I'm just a very useful cousin along on the ride." Elio gave off a relaxed aura that seemed to wash over everyone around him. Even Rio thought about loosening her shoulder until she remembered why she was there. Keep Elio in control, she told herself. He is just trying to hook into these people and find ways to use them as he did with camp half-blood.

"I see. I don't like to pry but I just got back from the south pole and I like being reminded of my mother's side of the family from time to time." Elio and Rio didn't respond to the man's spiel as they walked to what looked like a cafeteria. Low table with pillows right next to them that several people were kneeling on while they ate. Mostly pots of vegetables and rice were being served, least they assumed since most of the vegetables were unfamiliar in appearance.

Tenzin showed them to a small table where a small pot was ready to be eaten. He walked off with Ikki while Elio and Rio just stared at the pot. Rio whispered into Elio's ear.

"Do you know what any of this actually is?" Rio was uneasy, not just from how she could not identify the food, but because the most common way that camp half-bloods taught demigods about how monsters adduct demigods were drugging the food. She was fairly certain that was probably not going to happen but the thought was overriding her rationale. A portly monk brought some wooden sticks wrapped by some papers and symbols and placed them on the table.

"It's always nice to have some new blood in the air acolytes. Enjoy the meal."The monk said as he walked off to a larger group.

"Chopsticks?" Rio said, grabbing two of the sticks. Elio for once looked more confused than her.

"Chopsticks? What is a…." Elio said with his puzzled expression. It weirded out Rio greatly. Usually, he would have that would match whatever situation he was in. Relaxed, poised and importantly in control. Even when compared to some of the veteran demigods at the camp. He was steps ahead of everyone. Thought Rio

But maybe that was because that demon he made a deal with made it so. Feeding his actions and telling him the right response to take charge. People did say he was one of the best smooth talkers the camp has had in a long time. At Least one who wasn't a Hermes kid.

Elio was fumbling with the wrapping of the chopsticks like it was a delicate flower stem. It kinda resembled a small patient predator examining a strange thing it could eat.

It wasn't too hard for Rio to believe the story he told about being raised by a snake lady. His pupils even dilated a bit, a black diamond on a gold globe. Rio let out a sigh.

"Please don't tell me without help you're useless." Rio expertly separates the chopsticks and holds them with a proper grip. She picked a surprising amount of the pot with a single pluck and filled her mouth. Elio raised his eyebrow.

"I can do this without-" Rio raised her hand in front of Elio's face and took his chopsticks from him. All while chewing she separated the sticks and then placed them in Elio's hands in the right position.

Underneath the thumb and guide by the pinky finger. Showing him how to open and close and mimicking it with her own chopsticks.

"You don't have to-"

"I don't have to follow you, I don't have to see your face after all this is over, I don't have to do anything. I want to do this." Rio said stoically, distinctly. "Now eat before this food gets cold." Rio said before putting another bit of mystery vegetable into her mouth. Elio followed her example, eating a piece of what looked like a plum from the bowl of broth.

They ate in silence as the other tables became more vacant in time. It was the only way to tell time outside of looking at the bright moon outside. The island was just far away enough from shore to be outside the city's light pollution.

As they ate silently they enjoyed the quiet. How everything felt peaceful for once. A thing both of them have lacked for so long. Rio remembered the trips her family would go on constantly. In and out of a country within a month, especially if it was for a business trip her father had to be involved in. Which instantly becomes a major and minor choice in the company. The God in men's clothing was a workaholic and proud of it.

Elio remembered how he kept moving from town to town when he was younger. He has never been to school or done many of the things many other boys took for granted. Except maybe dating but three giant excuses of relationships were not things to be proud of. At least in his mind.

"Both lives had a certain energy to them that the other understood. They may not have liked it from time to time but understood. It was their routine and what gave them a certain steadiness in life. Both of their thoughts then went to the thing that ruined it. Their own blood.

The titian blood both flowing and churning in them in a mortal meat suit. It made Elio wonder about how human either one of them truly was. It made Rio sick to her stomach that she might not be human.

Elio focused on the application. How different were they? How much tougher they might be? How much stronger? How much power in general they had?

Rio was slightly philosophical about it. What made them different from humans? How what was the true difference besides power? How should they use their power?

They both kept their thoughts to each other preoccupied with that, less the overwhelming sense of dread of being stranded drowned them both. To them being not human was a meer wave compared to the tidal wave of realization of them being in another world. The deepest, darkest parts of them were running out that part of their situation.

Rio was imagining that she was actually on the shore of Hong Kong and that they were a plane ride away from home.

Elio imagined that it was in Puerto Rico but a weird angle from San Juan where all the Asian restaurants were packed together so it gave the illusion of a different nation.

But it wasn't like that. Both their minds made these flimsy excuses to make sure they wouldn't be frightened or overwhelmed. Like how a person tries to tell themselves that something is not horrifying by mentally repeating that it's not a big deal.

They realized and are trying to live with it. Among other things.

"The first thing we have to do is find a library." Elio said so suddenly that Rio nearly jumped from her seat.

"Jeez man a little warning next time." Rio said with gritted teeth regaining her composure.

"Jeez, Did I really hear you say Jeez of all things?" Elio questioned eating the last of the broth. "I may be a man of god but you are allowed to swear in front of me. I will probably pray for God to forgive you but still." Elio rattled on.

"One, you're more of a choir boy than I thought."

"I'll take that as flattery."

"Don't. Second, I don't think we can swear." Rio's statement hung in the air for some time. For a brief moment, Elio laughed lightly. But it died down as he started to realize that Rio's expression didn't change in the slightest.

"What?" Elio stated simply.

"I know how that sounds but it's true. I don't think we can swear." Rio tried to explain.

"Well…" Elio searched for a logical answer for her claim. He couldn't find one. "How do we test such a thing." Elio looked toward Rio for her answer. After a brief bit of thought. She stood up and took a breath.

"Poop! Carp! Buck! Cheese and crackers! Cock!" Rio covered her mouth after the last one.

"Maybe you were wrong about the whole-"

"What about a rooster?" The portly monk from earlier asked. Both Rio and Elio looked at the sizable man and then at each other. Then repeated this action twice after that.

"Nothing sir, we just realized this is going to be a long stay and I need to realize some steam.

"Oh! Like Avatar Aang! He would say things like Monkey feather's all the time in his youth in moments of frustration." The monk recounted happily as he took the utensil and food bowl from the Elio and Rio. "I am an expert on the Adventures of the Last Airbender so feel free to ask me as many questions as you like." A shiver went up Rio's spine. The feeling of spectral hands picking at her bones.

The memory was clicking now. Rio knew exactly where they were but needed confirmation.

"Could you say that again…" Rio awkwardly asked as her hand motion for the monk to give a name.

"Oh, Otaku. My name Otaku and I can not tell you how great it is to find another person's interest in world history. Such a subject in recent years is as close as it gets to actually experiencing the whole thing. I would give anything to see the Gaang in action, you get it! Gang and Aang." The monk unleashed a word buffet on the two, which only Rio seemed to follow while Elio was absorbing, what he thought were the important bits.

"Why the Gaang of all things. Why not team Avatar, or the liberators, something less I don't know, less punny." Elio remarked. Otaku sat to his side.

"You know I kinda like Gaang but Team Avatar does sound bolder and straight to the point now that I think about it but the Avatar and his friends were wound like a tight thread, Inseparable even. So a gang of friends who saved the world. The Gaang." Otaku explained.

"You know you're allowed to talk in less than three sentences. You do know that right?" Elio said, scrunching his eyes. Rio's face was cast in stone trying to hide her internal screaming as Otaku just laid brick after brick of evidence of where they were.

"Otaku?" Rio said blankly.

"What is it? Miss?"

"Rio. It's Rio, I'm going to say something and I want to see your reaction to it." Rio said distinctly making sure every syllable was heard and responded to.

"Alright?" Otaku tentatively raised an eyebrow. "What is it?" Rio cleared her throat.

"Long ago the four nations lived in harmony, but then the fire nation attacked. Only the Avatar, master of all four elements, could stop them.

"But when the world needed him the most, he vanished!" Otaku excitedly finished. Rio had a creaking simile. One that looked happy and joyful but occasionally twitches like a crackling stone. Elio noticed while Otaku was blissfully unaware of it. "You know the opening lines of Katara's memoirs too! Oh, happy days!" The moment she heard the name Katara Rio's face broke down. She was shaking erratically as she stared directly at Elio trying to find her words.

"I-I-I was a big fan back in the day. Loved all those adventures after a long hard day of school, I'll tell you what." Rio's expressions were loose and comical. Trying too hard to hide her fear and another feeling that was making much more volatile.

Elio could tell she reached a revelation of some kind. He didn't know quite what but he knew it was not his place to probe her about it. He looked at Otaku with sympathetic but tired eyes.

"Sorry man but I think the fatigue of traveling and the excitement of meeting you is getting flustered and not quite sure what to do. You might talk to me again later though, my sense of history is so off that it is funny." Elio put an arm around Otaku within a half-smile. " Just let us have some private time here now would you?" Otaku looked confused but finally saw that something was gnawing at Rio and he took his exit away from the two of them.

Both Elio and Rio were staring at each other as Elio examined Rio's face. Elio's face was calm, composed and poised. He kept his gaze trained on her.

"What did you realize?" Elio stated, Stone-faced. He looked at Rio with such vigor that he started noticing her pores while Rio sweated buckets. "Look whatever revelation you just had is not going to top the no swearing thing. Unless you somehow figured out how to leave this world I will not be moved." Elio started getting close to her ear, making sure he whispered the bits about other worlds.

Rio began to sweat even harder.

"You don't want to know. Trust me what I "realized" is Nietzsche's level of nihilism warped in a Truman show bun of life is meaningless." Elio merely blinked, Expressing dull surprise. "You only understood half of that reference. Did you?" Elio nodded.

"I know the Nietchze part." Elio said. Rio palmed her face.

"Of course, Of course. The weirdo from the El Yunque forest knows the forebearer of angst philosophy but doesn't know one of Jim Carrey's best performances." Rio cupped her face into her hands as she brought her legs to her chest.

"Oh, I know that too. It just wasn't that Truman-whatever show."

"You added a word."

"I know it was the mask. That was one of his best performances of his life." Elio said with a smug smile. Rio gave a small chuckle. "Now there's the girl I saw on the San Juan dock. Bright and full of energy and crotch smashing potential. I swear if Annabeth had not caught your foot a second sooner, we would have been talking about Miss Jackson the whole boat ride." Elio went off on a long fit of laughter, Rio only supplying a small chuckle. Remembering that.

They both laughed for a good few minutes recounting some of the more humorous things they saw at camp half-blood. How Elio nearly fainted when he saw Chiron horse half. How Elio belly-flopped onto the lava moat and left with no clothes on him but proudly walked to his cabin, daring anyone to wrestle him if they were going to make fun of him. She remembered the brief bits of respite from the training with weapons and talks of dangerous monsters, if for a little bit before her revelation rang in her mind again.

"Do you really want to know?" Rio said solemnly. Elio kept his jovial look, maintaining his hundred-watt smile.

"As I said, Nothing tops the natural censor bar for this place. Whatever it is we can work through it and again, I will do all I can to get us home no matter what." Elio said earnestly, something that surprised even him.

"We are in a world based on one of my favorite cartoons." Elio's face didn't change but inside he was screaming a wail that would have pierced the ear of a deaf man. But while it did rattle him his spirit didn't completely break. Not enough to not fake his smile. At Least that's what he thought.

"Well...If that's true. We might need to be a bit more creative. There's nothing saying that's true and that, even if it was, we can't find a way out of it. Just…" Elio tried to find the words that would encourage her and himself. A very difficult task that Elio felt matched at least golden fleece level of difficulty or maybe at least Theseus and the minotaur. A real mind tickles.

"I don't know if it's completely true but from what he told it may be right on the money. I-I don't know for sure b-b-but this is heavy stuff." Elio judged that from the tone that she meant shit. "I-I-I need rest. I'm going to try the bed's see ya in the morning." Rio walked off leaving Elio with this thought all alone in the cafeteria. Pondering on what next.

Unknown to both of them there were prying eyes watching. From the spirit world were the eyes of Eclipso, watching Elio with such vigor from his mercury bowl. But unknown to him there was another pair of eyes watching.

From outside the window, Elio and Rio were eating, a noble bird was watching. Looking at Elio from the window as it stood on its skinny legs outside. It had a long beak, a squiggly neck, and a royal blue coat of feathers.

"Now then. Demigod's on this side of the multiverse. Maybe I should pay them A quick visit tomorrow. Been a while since I used my human legs." Said the bird as it flew into the night sky. Sailing toward the city center with a self-satisfied look on his face.

**Author's Note:**

> This story has actually existed for a while on other site but be rest assured that this has been updated specifically for AOO. (Is that how it is shortened here?) In any case please leave comments of any kind and enjoy.


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